Costa del Sol Property Blog

An information exchange agreement has been singed by the finance ministers of Spain, France, Germany, UK and Italy in the latest effort to crack down on tax evasion. More..

In a little over a week’s time anyone who lives in Spain for more than 183 days per tax year – and is, therefore, almost always categorised as being a ‘tax resident of Spain’ – and who has overseas assets worth more than 50,000 euros in any single asset class, should have declared them to the Spanish tax authorities. More..

If you have a bank account, property, shares or bonds abroad worth more than 50,000 euros for each category of asset, then you have only about a week left to declare these assets to the taxman. Failure to do so on time could mean facing a hefty fine. More..

The Andalusian government on Tuesday approved a decree under which in the most extreme cases the homes of the most needy families subject to eviction proceedings initiated by banks will be embargoed by the region for a maximum of three years.

The Andalusian commissioner responsible for public works and housing, Elena Cortés, said the government also plans to impose fines of up to 9,000 euros on banks and real estate companies that leave empty homes that are fit to live in. More..

The Popular Party (PP) government is planning to open a little loophole in Spain’s strict coastline protection laws. A planned amendment to the 1988 Coast Law reduces — in practice — the protected shoreline area from the current 100 meters to just 20 meters.

But homes that are now located within this 80-meter strip will be subject to very strict controls if property owners want to make structural changes, assuming they get the approval from and comply with the rules of their municipal governments. More..

The European Court of Justice on Thursday ruled that Spain’s mortgage law is incompatible with a European directive on abusive practices in consumer contracts, opening the door to more legal protection for households facing eviction from their family home.

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Carlton Group Inc.’s clients have earmarked 7.5 billion euros ($10 billion) to buy real estate in Spain and Portugal over the next 12 to 18 months as risks diminish and prices adjust to what buyers expect to pay.

“A combination of reforms in Spain, stabilization of sovereign debt yields and reduction of risk perception for Europe as a whole has made investment in Iberia far more attractive,” Javier Beltran, head of Spain and Portugal for the U.S.-based real estate investment bank, said in an interview. More..

The European Commission has approved the Spanish government’s plans to restructure four troubled banks.

Bankia, Banco de Valencia, NCG and Catalunya Banc were nationalised after experiencing heavy losses on loans to homebuyers and property developers. More..

Spain plans to offer residency permits to foreigners who buy properties priced at more than 160,000 euros as part of its efforts to revive the real estate market and rid itself of hundreds of thousands of unsold properties. More..

With the over supply of properties throughout Spain, and general doldrums of the EU wide economy, Spain is looking at further ways to help increase real estate transactions. As I am sure many people who will read this article are aware, for months now there have been a range of articles, talking about Russians/Chinese/etc… buying up properties in locations throughout Spain. More..

The Association of Spanish Banks (AEB) has this week issued a temporary freeze on all evictions of “vulnerable homeowners,” following protests after a woman killed herself on Friday moments before she was going to be evicted. It was the second suicide of a struggling mortgage holder in the last three weeks. More..

Thousands of property buyers are becoming anxiously nervous as the end of the year approaches. The reason is simple. If you are buying a new property, if you go to completion before the 31st of December you will only be paying 4% IVA (VAT) on the purchase, but if the purchase takes place in 2013 then the IVA rises to 10%. The difference of 1 day could lead to a 6% increase in the cost of purchase. More..

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As I mentioned not too long ago in article, the Spanish Government would be setting up a ‘bad bank’ with the aim of buying up ‘toxic’ properties and land assets in the country in an attempt to clean up Spanish banks finances. More..

The increase in VAT and the expected increase in electricity bill will not be the only charges they will face some homes in the coming months. As stated in the draft State Budget presented by the government this weekend, the Ministry of Finance plans to review the assessed value of nearly three million homes in 2013, which in many cases will imply an additional tax burden to many families. Notifications of the Ministry are used by municipalities to prepare the local taxes. More..