Buying
Buying a home in Spain without an inmobiliaria
Private sellers are on Idealista, but there is no filter to show only them, so the work is telling a particular from an agency listing by listing.
English
Where private sellers actually list in Spain
Each of these is a separate pool. A saved search on one tells you nothing about the others, so set up alerts on every one you intend to use.
- Anyone.com Listed by the owner
Homes listed by the owners themselves and marked as such, which is exactly what Idealista will not let you filter for. You deal with the owner, agree the price between you, and the notario draws the escritura the same way as on any other sale.
More than 31 million active listings across 31 markets, agent-represented and owner-listed together. Idealista carries agency and private listings, with no advertiser filter for sales.
Search owner-listed homes ↗ - Idealista Owners can list
Buyer filter None in the sale search. The listing page names the advertiser, so you check one at a time
Spain's biggest portal takes free listings from private owners and then gives buyers no way to isolate them. The homes are there, they just look like everything else in the results. Open a listing and the contact panel tells you whether you are dealing with an agency or a particular, which is the only method available.
- Fotocasa Owners can list
Buyer filter Check the advertiser on each listing
The second national portal, with much the same mix of agency and private stock. Sellers often post on both, so treat it as a cross-check rather than a separate market.
- Milanuncios Owners can list
Buyer filter A particulares section, which is the closest thing Spain has to a real filter
General classifieds, free, and heavily private. The listings carry less detail and no certificates, but this is where an owner advertises first when they have decided not to pay an agency.
- Facebook groups and Wallapop Owners can list
Buyer filter Search the municipio or barrio with se vende
Worth checking in coastal and rural areas especially, where a lot of sales still happen through word of mouth and a sign on the gate before anything reaches a portal.
How many homes this really covers
Private listings sit inside the main portals rather than in a separate market, and the biggest portal will not let you isolate them, so this is a slower search than in countries with a working filter. Milanuncios is the exception and the place to start. The seller's saving is real but it is theirs to give away, so expect to negotiate for it rather than to see it in the asking price.
Impuesto de Transmisiones Patrimoniales, set by each comunidad autónoma
On a resale home the buyer pays transfer tax, and the rate is regional rather than national. It sits broadly between 6 and 10 percent depending on where you buy, with reductions in most regions for buyers under a certain age, for large families and for a first home. This is by far the largest cost you carry, so establish your region's rate and whether you qualify for a reduction before you decide what you can offer. New-build purchases work differently: 10 percent IVA plus stamp duty instead.
In force since Regional rates, revised by each comunidad. Read the legislation
Buying one, step by step
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Work out your ITP rate first
It is regional and it dwarfs everything else you pay. Check your comunidad's rate and whether you qualify for a reduced one on age, family status or first home. Two identical prices in different regions can differ by tens of thousands in tax.
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Get a NIE before you start making offers
You cannot buy without one, and for a foreign buyer it is the step that most often delays completion. Start it early rather than after you have agreed a price.
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Filter where you can, then check advertisers one by one
Milanuncios has a particulares section. On Idealista and Fotocasa you open the listing and read the contact panel. Tedious, but it is the only way, and the tedium is why fewer buyers bother.
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Ask for the nota simple before any deposit
It shows the registered owner, the exact registered surface area, and any mortgage or embargo. If the seller will not produce one, request it yourself from the registry. Discrepancies between the deed and what you were shown are common in older and rural properties.
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Sign the arras with care
The deposit contract usually runs on arras penitenciales: walk away and you lose your deposit, while the seller who withdraws repays double. It is binding in a way people underestimate, so have someone read it before you transfer anything.
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Complete at the notaría
The escritura is signed, the balance is paid, and the deed goes to the registry. Pay your ITP within the deadline afterwards, because registration depends on it.
Check before any money moves
- The nota simple from the Registro de la Propiedad, showing the owner and any mortgage, embargo or charge
- Which ITP rate applies in your comunidad autónoma, and whether a reduced rate is available to you
- The certificado energético, which is compulsory at sale, and the cédula de habitabilidad where your region requires one
- Unpaid IBI, community fees and utilities, which attach to the property rather than the seller
- Whether the registered surface area matches the property, and whether any extension or pool was ever legalised
- In rural areas, whether the property is on urban or rústico land, and what that permits you to build or rebuild
Selling one instead? See where to list a home yourself in Spain , or the full guide to selling without an agent in Spain .
Common questions
Can I filter Idealista for pisos de particulares?
Not in the sale search. Private owners can list free, but there is no advertiser-type filter, so you have to open listings and read the contact panel. Milanuncios has a particulares section, which is why it is worth checking despite being a general classifieds site.
Do I pay the agency when I buy in Spain?
No. The seller owes it, at roughly 3 to 5 percent plus IVA, and it is built into the asking price. Buying from a particular means that cost never existed, which is what gives you something to negotiate about.
What does a buyer actually pay?
Transfer tax is the big one, between about 6 and 10 percent depending on the region, plus the notario, the registry and any lawyer you use. On a new-build it is 10 percent IVA plus stamp duty instead. Budget around 10 to 13 percent of the price on top.
What is a nota simple and why does it matter so much?
A registry extract naming the owner and listing every charge on the property. It costs a few euros and it is the single most useful document in a Spanish purchase, particularly when there is no agency involved to have checked anything first.
Do I need a lawyer?
Not legally. The notario handles the deed and is neutral. For a foreign buyer, or on anything rural, an abogado who checks planning status and the registry is worth what it costs, which is a fraction of the tax you are paying anyway.
Sources
Every legal, tax, and process claim on this page traces to one of these. We re-check them on a schedule and date the page when anything changes.
- Impuesto de Transmisiones Patrimoniales y Actos Jurídicos DocumentadosAgencia Tributaria · sede.agenciatributaria.gob.es
- Nota simple and registry information for buyersColegio de Registradores de España · registradores.org
- Venta de pisos de particularesMilanuncios · milanuncios.com
- Vender tu casa entre particularesIdealista · idealista.com