What documents do I need to sell my flat in Catalonia?

Question

José Manuel Alburquerque · Accepted Answer

To sign the deed of sale you need your “DNI” (Spanish identity card) or “NIE” (foreigner's identity number), the deed by which you acquired the flat or its details, the latest bill for the IBI (the local property tax) and the certificate from the owners' association (the “comunidad de propietarios”) on the flat's debts. You also need the energy performance certificate and, in Catalonia, a valid certificate of habitability (“cédula de habitabilidad”). If the flat has a mortgage, you will need a certificate from the bank showing what remains to be paid on the day of signing, so that the mortgage can be discharged with part of the price. What most often delays the sale is the owners' association certificate, an expired certificate of habitability or the outstanding mortgage, so it is advisable to have everything ready before signing the deposit agreement (“contrato de arras”). What you will always be asked for The DNI or NIE of all the owners who are selling. If any of them cannot go to the notary's office, someone else can sign on their behalf under a notarial power of attorney. If the flat is the family home, your spouse or your stable partner (in a “pareja estable”, the Catalan stable partnership) must also consent, even if the flat is yours alone. The deed by which you bought the flat or, if you inherited it, the inheritance deed. The original is not needed, because the notary checks the “Registro de la Propiedad” (the Land Registry) directly before the signing. The latest paid IBI bill. It shows the cadastral reference, the number by which the Cadastre (“Catastro”) identifies the flat, which has to be given to the notary. The buyer will also want to check that it has been paid, because the flat is liable for unpaid bills even if it changes hands. The owners' association's statement of debts, which says whether the flat owes anything or is up to date. In Catalonia the deed cannot be signed without it, unless the buyer and the seller expressly waive it. Ask the managing agent for it one or two weeks in advance. A valid certificate of habitability, which certifies that the flat meets the minimum standards for living in it. In Catalonia the home must have one at the time of the sale, with some exceptions. If it has expired, renew it beforehand. The registered energy performance certificate, with its label. A copy is attached to the deed of sale. What you may be asked for, depending on the case If there is still a mortgage, the bank's certificate showing the outstanding debt at the date of signing. The usual practice is to pay it off at the notary's office with part of the price and for the bank to sign the discharge afterwards. If the flat is let, proof that you notified the tenant of the sale, as the tenant may have the right to buy it before anyone else. If anyone acquired the flat after 9 April 2008 through mortgage enforcement proceedings, whether the bank or the winning bidder at the auction, or through a “dación en pago”, in which the borrower hands it over to the bank to settle the debt, proof that you notified the “Agència de l'Habitatge de Catalunya”, the Catalan housing agency, of the sale. In those cases the agency may be entitled to buy it for the same price. The notice is required even if the flat has since changed hands, including if you bought it at the auction in those proceedings. If you bought it at another auction, one that did not arise from mortgage enforcement, its sale is not subject to this right on that account. If it is officially protected housing (“vivienda de protección oficial”), authorisation to sell it from the Generalitat de Catalunya (the Catalan government), which also controls the maximum price. If you are not resident in Spain, your NIE. The buyer will have to withhold 3 % of the price on account of your taxes. Before signing the deposit agreement Gather these documents before signing the deposit agreement, the one signed when the down payment is made, because the buyer will ask for them in order to decide. If the building has had its building inspection (“ITE”), the buyer may also ask you for that report, which the managing agent usually holds. In the rest of Spain the owners' association certificate is also required, although the buyer can release the seller from providing it. The certificate of habitability, on the other hand, does not exist in all of Spain's autonomous communities.