Talk Quesada forum

I am in the process of trying to purchase a repossessed apartment and it is taking an awfully long time. The agent keeps asking for lots of personal information on behalf of the selling bank regarding income even though we are cash buyers. We have had to prove provenance of the funds which we have done on the understanding that this is a requirement to stop money laundering. The agent cannot confirm whether or not we have supplied sufficient information; they therefore cannot give us a completion date and we are left in a permanent state of flux! Can anyone give me a clue as to the expected time frame? It has been 2 months since signing...

You need to see a lawyer as you have not supplied enough information to fully understand the situation a good lawyer will sort it out for you
Which bank is selling the property

Aliseda - I believe they are an arm of Banco Popular...

We bought a repossessed property and it is a legthy process but no longer than a normal purchase. You need a solicitor so they can keep you updated about the process.

Thanks - but isn't the agent supposed to be doing that? Also, if they are just marketing rather than providing legal backup, do I need a notary as well as a lawyer? I have bought a property in Spain before and the agent whisked us through the whole process quite quickly - but it wasn't a repossession!

ring Aliseda on 91 123 12 48 (Monday to Sunday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. except national holidays), and get an explanation sounds like something fishy going on and you need a lawyer to sort things out or you are at risk of losing your money

When it is a repossession you definitely need a Lawyer, buying from a bank can have as many problems as a private sale if fact more .. agents are not qualified in any way to deal with it.

Clara wrote:Thanks - but isn't the agent supposed to be doing that? Also, if they are just marketing rather than providing legal backup, do I need a notary as well as a lawyer? I have bought a property in Spain before and the agent whisked us through the whole process quite quickly - but it wasn't a repossession!

Regardless of who it is, an Agent is working for the seller as they pay them (OK, using the buyers money at the end of the day) so they are not exactly impartial. so you really do need proper legal representation as you would in UK. You may get away with it sometimes but you are leaving yourself open to manipulation.
Regarding a notary, one has to be involved at some stage otherwise any documentation is not valid under Spanish Law, even a Lawyer has to go through a Notary.

Clara wrote:Thanks - but isn't the agent supposed to be doing that?

The golden rule is NEVER use the estate agent to act as your solicitor, and never use the ‘pet’ solicitor recommend by the estate agent.

The estate agent is in business to do one thing - make money out of selling houses. You need an independent solicitor whose single role is to represent your best interests in the house purchase process.

Your solicitor will have a public notary that they use, so you don’t need to worry about that side of things.

If the repossessed property has been vacant for some time then ensure that you understand your potential liabilities in regard to outstanding community and service charges, utilities, bank admin charges etc. Also check that utilities are currently connected, or budget for the time and money involved in getting them reconnected.

Pete.

absolutely what Pete said

I used a solicitor recommended by the agent (there was a good reason for this at the time) and have nothing but regret regret regret since.