About Us As we said on our home page we are a family owned and run estate agency in the village of Orgiva, Las Alpujarras, Andalusia, Spain. We have lived in the area for 5 years and have established and expanded our business thanks to our reputation through the area and also for our honest and trustworthy way of working. We WILL NOT sell a property to anyone if that property is illegal or known to have new info structure planning on or near the property without firstly informing the buyers and sellers to make sure all parties are aware, as we feel our reputation is worth more than a quick euro in the pocket. Information for buyers, Homes Espana La Alpujarra 2006 S.L offers a wide range of country houses, townhouses, apartments, plots of land and developments in the area of the Las Alpujarras, Lecrin Valley, Costa tropical and Granada. We can arrange private rental accommodation for you while you are in the area to view as well as taking you to look at any properties that we have for sale that meet your personal requirements. We help with all aspects of buying in Spain such as residential or N.I.E applications, bank accounts, money exchange, mortgages, utility connections and name changes, advising on lawyers, architects and builders in the area for you to use while purchasing a property. We charge a commission of 2 % of the purchase price plus I.V.A on resale properties, while with most new builds and off plan developments we do not charge a commission to the buyers as the builder/developer pays us our commission. If you are looking to ‘buy to rent’, or have a property that you rent, we have a full property management team to help with advertising, meet and greet, change over cleaning, pool cleaning, gardening and much more contact us for more details. RE-SALE PROPERTY So you have decided to look at buying a property Spain. There are many things you will need to be clear on, and Homes Espana La Alpujarra 2006, S.L. is here to advice and help you along the way. Firstly, we suggest that when you book a trip to view in an area that you have chosen, also book your accommodation in that area as this way you will be able to look around the village or town during the day viewing and also get the atmosphere at night. Secondly, we advise that you should have a 10% deposit available in your bank account ready to transfer into your personal Spanish bank account, because if you find a re-sale property then this is what will normally be needed to secure that property and have it taken off from the open market. Thirdly, once you arrive in the area ask the locals to recommend information about lawyers, architects and builders as this way you will also have some experience from local people as well as what your agent is telling you. Lastly, no matter what you are told you must use a lawyer when buying a property. Lawyers will normally cost between 0.5 and 1% of the property price and will make sure all transactions are legal. Notary fees should be split between buyer and seller 50/50 and varies in price depending on the property price. Transfer taxes are 7% of the declared price Registry fees vary from each property. These fees will normally add up to between 10-11% of the purchase price. OFF PLAN DEVELOPMENTS AND NEW BUILDS. New developments and off plan buying is the best investment there is in Spain. All developments should be bank guaranteed to make sure your investment is safe and secure. Some new developments now offer a rental amount on your property for the first 5 – 10 years and although this sounds great it does not suit everyone. If you are looking to regain the monies you have put into your property but still wish to use it when you want then maybe you should contact us and let our property management team talk you through what we can offer. Firstly, we again suggest that when you book a trip to view in an area that you have chosen, also book your accommodation in that area as this way you will be able to look around the village or town during the day viewing and also get the Spanish living atmosphere at night. Secondly, when buying a new development ask lots of questions about what is included and not included in the price of your property, many new builds have air conditioning pipe work installed but not the units, they also do not always have full kitchens, charge extra for garages, parking space and store rooms. Once you have been given all the answers to your questions and if you still want to buy, you will need to open a bank account and transfer your reserve into that account to secure your property. Finally, seek legal advice though a Spanish, English speaking lawyer who knows the rules and regulations of developments in the area you wish to buy, once you have this legal representation you will be able to have the purchase contract revised and checked to ensure it is legal and protects your investment. As with re sale were you need to add 10 – 11% extra, you only need to add 3-4% on buying a new development as your 7% property tax is included in the price. *With new builds there should be a reserve contract and payment which states which property you are looking to buy and its price. The reserve payment gives you a cooling off period of 30 days, after this a purchase contract is drawn up and you would have a 15% deposit to be paid, then six months later another 15% payment is paid and then the final payment is made when you have the deeds for the property*. *All stage payments and time scales differ from each development check with your agent how the developer is staging their payments. Information for sellers, Homes Espana La Alpujarra 2006 S.L offers a highly visited website to advertise your property as well as a free valuation and advise on what may help your property sell quicker on the open market. We also have excellent working relationships with local lawyers; architects and builders whom can help with any building legalisation that may be needed to sell the property. We will help through the whole process of selling the property, changing utility bills and taxes, also we will (depending on knowledge) make you aware of any local planning that may be going on in the surrounding area of the property. Our commission to sell your property is 2% of the sale price plus I.V.A. Please feel free to contact us if you have a property to sell in the Las Alpujarras, Lecrin valley or Costa tropical.