Selling your home in Orihuela, step by step

Selling a home involves only a few steps, but they need to be taken in order. Here they are, along with what tends to go wrong at each one.

1. Set a price you can justify

The asking price is the single most important decision. If it’s too high, the home loses interest in its first weeks, which are the ones that attract the most viewings. Compare it with what’s being offered and sold nearby, and take into account condition, floor, lift and garage. The land registry’s reference value helps too: buyers look at it because it affects their taxes.

2. Gather the documents

Having them from the outset avoids delays when a buyer appears:

• Title deed and ID or NIE of every owner.
• Recent land registry extract (nota simple).
• Latest council tax (IBI) receipt and cadastral reference.
• Energy performance certificate: it’s mandatory and its label must appear in advertising.
• Community certificate showing payments are up to date, if there’s a community.
• Second-occupation licence or declaration, if applicable.
• If there’s an outstanding mortgage, the loan details so it can be cancelled.

3. Prepare the home

Tidiness, light and a clean look make a difference in photos and at viewings. Before spending on a renovation, work out whether you’ll get the money back in the price: sometimes painting and fixing small things is enough.

How we approach home staging

4. Promote it and screen viewings

Good photos, an accurate description, complete information and a presence on portals and among partner agencies. And screening: asking what each buyer is looking for and whether their financing is on track, before each viewing, saves you time and hassle.

5. Reservation and deposit contract

Once there’s agreement, a reservation is usually signed, followed by a deposit contract (contrato de arras) setting out the price, deposit, deadline and what happens if either party pulls out. With “arras penitenciales”, a buyer who withdraws typically loses the deposit and a seller who withdraws returns double. Read it carefully before signing: the wording is what counts.

6. Signing at the notary

The buyer usually chooses the notary. On the day, the documents are checked, the price is paid and any mortgage is cancelled using part of that money. Utilities are then closed or transferred to the new owner.

7. Taxes the seller pays

• Municipal capital gains tax (plusvalía municipal, IIVTNU): charged by the council on the increase in land value. It’s calculated by whichever of the actual or objective methods is more favourable, and isn’t due if there was no gain.
• Income tax: the gain (sale price minus purchase price, costs and improvements) is taxed in the savings base, at between 19% and 30%. It may be exempt if you reinvest in a new main home, or if you’re over 65 and selling your main home, subject to requirements.
• If you don’t live in Spain, the buyer withholds 3% of the price on account of your tax.

Situations that need a little more

Inherited property

The inheritance must first be accepted and its taxes paid. You can have the home valued and prepare the sale in the meantime, but heirs need to have this resolved before signing.

Separation or joint ownership

All owners must agree and sign, either in person or through a power of attorney.

Living abroad

You can sell without attending the signing by granting a power of attorney to someone you trust. Do it in good time, as a power granted abroad may need an apostille and translation.

Request a valuation