More Things That Surprised Us Buying Property in Spain

Part one covered the big surprises, the extra taxes, the NIE, the agent conflict of interest, the timeline. I thought that would be it. Then we kept going through the process and more things came up. These are the ones that catch buyers off guard in the second half, after they've found the property and started to think they'd got on top of it.

The Gestor You Didn't Know You'd Need

A gestor is a licensed Spanish administrative professional. You won't find them mentioned in most UK guides to buying in Spain, but they are a standard part of the process here.

Your lawyer may engage a gestor to handle the submission of tax forms, registration of the purchase deed at the land registry, and liaison with government offices. In some cases you pay the gestor directly. In others their fees are included in your lawyer's bill. Either way, budget for it. Gestor fees run €300 to €1,500.

Think of a gestor as the person who knows how the Spanish bureaucratic machine works and does the paperwork correctly. In a process with multiple government filings, that expertise is genuinely useful.

Community Fees: the Ongoing Cost Nobody Calculates Upfront

Most properties on the Costa del Sol, whether you're looking at an apartment near Puerto Banús, a townhouse in Nueva Andalucía, or a villa in a gated development near Benahavís, sit within a community. That community manages shared infrastructure: pools, gardens, security, roads, lifts. The owners fund it collectively through community fees (comunidad).

Community fees vary enormously. A simple apartment block might charge €1,500 per year. A luxury development with a staffed reception, multiple pools, and 24-hour security might charge €10,000 or more per year.

Before you commit to any property, find out what the annual community fees are. This is part of your true ownership cost, not a one-off, but an annual obligation. Your lawyer checks for community fee arrears during due diligence. Make sure you also understand what the ongoing charges will be.

Non-Resident Income Tax (Even If You Don't Rent)

This one catches almost every first-time foreign buyer: Spain taxes you on your property even if you don't earn a penny from it.

If you are not a Spanish tax resident, you pay non-resident income tax (IRNR) annually. Spain calculates a notional rental income based on the property's cadastral value and taxes it at 19 per cent (EU/EEA residents) or 24 per cent (non-EU residents). On a typical property on the Costa del Sol, this might come to €1,000 to €3,000 per year.

It must be filed and paid every year, even if the property is your holiday home and you use it for two weeks in August and leave it empty the rest of the time. Most buyers engage a gestor or their lawyer to handle this filing.

The Community Vote You Don't Know About

When you buy into a community development, you are joining a mini-democracy. The annual community meeting (junta de propietarios) is where owners vote on budgets, maintenance works, rule changes, and special assessments.

Special assessments are the thing to understand. If the community building's facade needs repainting, or the lift needs replacing, or the pool needs major repair, the cost is split between owners. This can arrive as a bill for several thousand euros at any time, outside of your regular fees.

These situations are not usually visible during a viewing. They may be visible in the community minutes, which your lawyer should request and review as part of due diligence.

PlanMarbella.com is a free app that prepares you for every stage of the buying process, including the ones in part 3. Manage it solo, or share the plan with your partner or PA - delegate any step and keep clear oversight of where things stand.