Buying in Mallorca

The process, step by step

1. Get ready: NIE number, Spanish bank account, funds or a mortgage in principle, and a lawyer. Doing this first is what turns you from a browser into a buyer in an agent's eyes.

2. Search and view: shortlist with an agent, view, ask for the nota simple (the registry extract) and the cadastral record for anything serious.

3. Offer: made through the agent, usually in writing. Once accepted you normally pay a small reservation deposit to take the property off the market for a short period while your lawyer checks it.

4. Due diligence: your lawyer checks title, debts, licences, planning status, community fees and the cadastral record against reality.

5. Private contract (contrato de arras): typically 10% of the price. If you pull out you lose it; if the seller pulls out they normally pay it back doubled.

6. Completion at the notary: the deed (escritura) is signed, the balance paid, keys handed over. The purchase is then registered at the Land Registry and taxes are settled.

Typical timing from accepted offer to completion is six to twelve weeks. Cash buyers with everything in place can be faster; mortgages and complex titles take longer.

NIE, bank account and lawyer

The NIE (Número de Identidad de Extranjero) is the tax identification number every foreigner needs to buy property, pay taxes and open utilities. You cannot complete without one. Apply through a Spanish consulate abroad, at a police station in Spain, or through a lawyer or gestor with power of attorney. Allow several weeks.

A Spanish bank account is needed to pay the purchase taxes, utilities and community fees, and most notaries expect the purchase funds to arrive through one. Non-resident accounts are routine; the bank will ask for proof of income and source of funds.

Use an independent Spanish lawyer, not one recommended by the seller. Budget roughly one percent of the price plus VAT. A gestor handles administration such as NIE applications and utility transfers.

Costs and taxes on top of the price

Budget an extra ten to fifteen percent on top of the purchase price. The largest item is transfer tax.

Resale property: transfer tax (ITP) in the Balearic Islands is progressive by price band, starting around eight percent and rising to thirteen percent on the portion above two million euros. Ask your lawyer for the current bands.

New build from a developer: VAT (IVA) at ten percent plus stamp duty (AJD) at around one and a half percent instead of ITP.

Plus notary fees, Land Registry fees, your lawyer, and mortgage set-up costs if you borrow. Estate agent fees in Mallorca are almost always paid by the seller.

Ongoing: annual property tax (IBI), rubbish charge, community fees for apartments and urbanisations, non-resident income tax, and wealth tax above certain thresholds. Rental income is taxable in Spain.

Mortgages and proof of funds

Spanish banks typically lend non-residents sixty to seventy percent of the valuation, residents up to eighty percent. Expect the process to take four to eight weeks and to need translated income documents.

An agreement in principle before you start viewing does two things: it tells you your real budget, and it tells the agent and the owner you can perform. Sellers regularly refuse offers, and sometimes viewings, from buyers who cannot show how they will pay.

For cash purchases, be ready to show proof of funds and source of funds. Banks and notaries are obliged to check under anti-money-laundering rules, so this is not an agent being difficult.

Viewings: why they are hard to get and easy to lose

In Mallorca a viewing is often a bigger production than buyers expect. Many owners do not live on the island or in the property. A viewing can mean a caretaker, a key-holder, a cleaner, a flight, or an owner clearing their holiday home for strangers.

Because of that effort, owners ask their agent one question before agreeing: is this person able to buy? If the agent cannot answer with confidence, the viewing is declined or quietly never scheduled.

Viewings get cancelled for the same reason, and also because the property went under offer, the owner changed their mind about selling, a tenant refused access, or the buyer's timing did not match the owner's availability.

What gets doors opened: a clear budget with the means to back it, an NIE or one in progress, a timeline, a small shortlist rather than a wish to see everything, flexibility on dates, and turning up. Agents remember no-shows.

Agents also protect owners' privacy. Addresses are often withheld until a viewing is confirmed, photos may be limited, and you may be asked to sign a short viewing or confidentiality form for high-value homes. None of this is unusual.

The owner's point of view

Selling a home in Mallorca often means opening a private house to people the owner will never meet, arranging access from abroad, and sometimes disclosing details that make the property identifiable. Owners are cautious about who they let in and what they share.

Most owners instruct several agents without exclusivity, so an agent's time is unpaid until a sale completes. Agents therefore spend that time on buyers who have shown they are ready. It is nothing personal.

The fastest way to be taken seriously is to make the agent's conversation with the owner easy: who you are, what you can spend, how you will pay, when you can complete, and that you have viewed the details properly before asking to see the house.

Real estate agents and buyer's agents

A real estate agent (listing agent) is instructed by the seller and paid by the seller. They will show you their own listings and, through shared networks, often other agencies' listings too.

A buyer's agent works for you: searching the whole market, including off-market homes, vetting properties, negotiating and managing the process. They are paid by you, usually a percentage of the price or a fixed fee, sometimes partly offset by a share of the seller's commission.

Either way, be honest and consistent about your budget and situation. Agents talk to each other, and a buyer who gives three different stories to three agents gets three cautious responses.

Offers, reservation and the arras contract

Offers are normally made in writing through the agent and can be conditional, for example on a mortgage or a survey. Asking prices in Mallorca are negotiable but rarely by the large margins buyers hope for on well-priced homes.

A reservation agreement takes the property off the market for a short period, typically two to four weeks, against a deposit that is usually a few thousand euros or up to one percent. Make sure your lawyer reviews it and that it is refundable if the legal checks fail.

The arras contract fixes price, completion date and conditions. The deposit is usually ten percent. Under the common penitential form, a buyer who withdraws forfeits it and a seller who withdraws returns double.

What your lawyer checks

Title and ownership at the Land Registry (nota simple), charges and mortgages, embargoes, and whether the seller is who they say they are.

The cadastral record: registered size, use, year built and footprint. Differences between the cadastre, the registry and what is physically there are common and need explaining before you sign.

Planning and licences: first occupation licence, building licences for extensions and pools, rural land restrictions, tourist rental licence if you plan to let, and any outstanding infractions.

Community of owners: statutes, fees, debts on the property and any approved works you would inherit.

Energy certificate, utility contracts and, for older or rural homes, water rights, septic systems and access.

Residency, visas and time on the island

Buying property does not give you the right to live in Spain. The property-based golden visa closed in 2025.

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens can live in Spain and register as residents. Non-EU citizens, including UK nationals, are limited to ninety days in any one hundred and eighty without a visa. Longer stays need a visa such as the non-lucrative visa or the digital nomad visa.

Tax residency is separate again and is triggered by spending more than one hundred and eighty-three days a year in Spain or having your main economic interests there. Take advice before you become resident by accident.

Renting the property out

Short-term holiday letting in Mallorca requires a tourist rental licence (ETV). Licences are limited, zoned, and not available for most apartments. Do not assume a property can be let to tourists because a listing says so; have your lawyer verify the licence.

Long-term letting is possible without a tourist licence but is regulated, including rent controls in designated areas and minimum contract terms. Rental income is taxed in Spain for residents and non-residents alike.

Selling a property in Mallorca

Price it from data, not hope. Look at what comparable homes are asking now and how long they have been listed; MallorcaData's price search reports show current asking prices and how many listings sit in each price band for your area and property type.

Instructing agents: most sellers in Mallorca instruct several agents without exclusivity, which is why the same home appears on many portals. An exclusive instruction usually gets more effort and better marketing from one agent; a non-exclusive one gets wider but shallower exposure. Agent commission is paid by the seller and is typically around five percent plus VAT, negotiable.

Paperwork to have ready: title deed (escritura), latest IBI and rubbish receipts, community fee certificate showing no debts, energy performance certificate (compulsory to advertise), first occupation or habitation certificate, building licences for any works, and the cadastral record matching what is actually built. Discrepancies between the cadastre, the registry and reality are the commonest cause of delayed or collapsed sales, so fix them before listing.

Viewings from the seller's side: agents will pre-qualify buyers, and it is reasonable to insist they do. Ask what the agent knows about a buyer's funding and timeline before you arrange access, especially if you live abroad or the home is let.

Taxes when you sell: capital gains tax on the profit (nineteen percent for non-residents; residents pay on a sliding scale), and the municipal plusvalía tax on the increase in land value. Non-resident sellers have three percent of the price retained at completion by the buyer and paid to the tax office on account of capital gains; you reclaim any excess afterwards.

Costs of selling: agent commission, the plusvalía, your lawyer, the energy certificate, and settling any mortgage (cancellation fee plus registry costs). The buyer pays the notary and registry for the purchase itself, unless agreed otherwise.

Frequently asked questions