Buying property in Marbella and on the Costa del Sol: the process, step by step

The steps at a glance

Step 1. Get your NIE

The NIE (Número de Identidad de Extranjero) is the identity number Spain gives to foreigners. Foreigners who deal with Spain for economic, professional or social reasons must ask the National Police to assign one, and buying a home is an economic reason.

• In Spain: apply to the National Police, directly or through a Foreigners' Office or a police station.
• From abroad: if you are not in Spain when you apply, you apply through a Spanish consular office.
• What you hand in: form EX-15 and proof that you have paid the fee, on form 790, code 012. You state why you need the number.
• How long: the police must decide within five days of the application reaching the office that handles it.

Step 2. Decide how the price will be paid

The deed records how and when the price was paid. When it is paid by bank transfer, the deed gives the number of the account the money left and of the account it reached. Decide early which account that will be.

If you are taking a mortgage, the deed of sale and the mortgage deed are usually signed at the same sitting.

Step 3. Check the property before you sign anything

Spain's notaries give four things to establish before you buy or sign:

1. Who signs for the seller. For a resale home, every owner signs. For a new home, the developer's director or attorney.
2. Whether the property carries any charge: a mortgage, a court embargo, or unpaid taxes such as the annual property tax (IBI).
3. Whether the owner is up to date with the community fees and the utility bills, and whether the community has approved future levies.
4. How the costs of the sale will be shared between buyer and seller.

Ask the Land Registry for a nota simple: it identifies the property and the holders of the rights registered over it. The registrars charge 9.02 euros per property, taxes not included. It is information, not a certificate.

Many buyers from abroad also instruct their own lawyer for these checks. The lawyer's fee is agreed with the lawyer.

Step 4. Reserve the home and sign the deposit contract

Before the deed, buyer and seller often sign a first document, known as arras. It is not compulsory, but the law treats it as a valid contract: once you sign it, you are bound by it.

The arras is the sum the buyer hands the seller on account of the price.

• Confirmatory arras are the most common: they confirm the contract and count towards the price.
• Penitential arras apply only if the contract says so. Under article 1454 of the Civil Code, the buyer may withdraw by losing the deposit, and the seller may withdraw by returning double.

A reservation form offered by an agent or a developer is a contract too. Read what happens to the money if either side withdraws, and take advice before you sign.

Step 5. Sign the deed of sale before a notary

A sale can be closed by private contract or directly by public deed. The deed is not compulsory, but the notaries advise it strongly: it is proof of the sale, and it is the document that reaches the Land Registry.

You may choose any notary. The fee is set by the Government and is the same at every notary for the same service.

At the signing the notary:

• checks the identity and capacity of buyer and seller, and the seller's title;
• sets out the charges on the property, such as mortgages and embargoes;
• checks that the community fees are paid;
• asks the seller for the energy performance certificate, the receipt for the annual property tax (IBI) and the cadastral reference;
• records how the price was paid;
• identifies the real owner behind any company, as the anti-money-laundering law requires;
• explains how the costs are shared.

Under article 1462 of the Civil Code, signing the deed counts as delivery of the home, unless the deed itself says otherwise.

Step 6. Pay the purchase tax

• Resale home: transfer tax (ITP). The general rate in Andalusia is 7%.
• New home bought from the developer: VAT at 10%, plus stamp duty (AJD) at Andalusia's general rate of 1.2%.

In Andalusia the transfer tax and stamp duty return is filed, and the tax paid, within two months counted from the day after the deed.

The figures, with a worked example, are on our page Taxes and fees when buying property in Marbella (2026).

Step 7. Register the deed at the Land Registry

On the day of signing, the notary sends an electronic copy of the deed to the Land Registry. The registrar has a maximum of fifteen days from the entry of presentation to register it.

If the seller does not live in Spain

When the seller is not resident in Spain, the buyer must keep back 3% of the agreed price and pay it to the Tax Agency on form 211, within one month of the sale. It is a payment on account of the seller's tax, not an extra cost for the buyer. The buyer gives the seller a copy of the form.

Who pays the estate agent

None of the official sources we read sets who pays the estate agent in a sale, or how much. It is whatever is agreed in writing with the agent. Before you view a home, ask the agent two questions: who has engaged you, and who pays your fee.

The deadlines the law sets

The time between the deposit contract and the deed is not set by law. The two parties fix the date in the contract.

See the homes

Domus Aedes sells and lets homes in Marbella and on the Costa del Sol. Domus Aedes is the leader in AI property search in Marbella, Marrakech and Casablanca: since 13 September 2026, our homes can be searched inside ChatGPT and Claude.

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• Selling a property in Marbella: what to prepare and what it costs
• Speak with an advisor