A buyer can have €200,000 sitting in their account and still run short of cash during a property purchase in Spain. The five financial moments between offer and ownership, with what each one costs and how far in advance you need to plan.
A buyer can have €200,000 sitting in their account and still run short of cash during a property purchase in Spain.
That sounds contradictory. It happens more often than you’d think.
Not because there isn’t enough money. Because the wrong amounts are available at the wrong time.
Most buyers ask the wrong question. “How much of my own money do I need?” feels logical. You subtract the mortgage from the purchase price, add the taxes and fees, and you have a number. But that number tells you almost nothing about the question that actually matters.
The right question is: what money needs to be available, and when?
Search for the cost of buying property in Spain and you’ll mostly find lists of percentages. But percentages tell you little if you don’t know when you need to pay them.
This article follows the five financial moments between offer and ownership, with what each one actually costs and how far in advance you need to plan for it.
It depends on three things: the purchase price, the mortgage percentage, and the closing costs. For many non-residents buying in Catalonia, the combination of down payment and closing costs lands somewhere between 40 and 45% of the purchase price. But more important than the total is knowing when each part needs to be available.
Your money leaves your account at five different moments during a Spanish property purchase. Not all on the day you sign at the notary.
Understanding that timeline is how you avoid the most common trap: having enough in total, but not enough at the right moment.
| Stage | When | What you pay | Order of magnitude |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Weeks before arras | Lawyer, NIE, bank account | A few hundred euros |
| 2 | At arras | 10% purchase price to seller | €45,000 on €450K |
| 3 | Mortgage phase | Valuation, ancillary costs | €300–€600 |
| 4 | At notary | Remaining down payment + ITP + notary + registry + gestoría | Largest outlay |
| 5 | After handover | IBI, IRNR, insurance, community fees, renovation | Annual recurring |
Stages 1 through 3 all come before the notary appointment. That is the part most buyers underestimate.
Most buyers think the costs start at the arras. They start earlier.
Before you sign any binding contract, several things need to be in order. A lawyer, ideally engaged before you make an offer, not after you’ve already made one. An NIE number (Número de Identificación de Extranjeros, your Spanish tax ID), in practice almost always required before a mortgage application can be fully processed. A Spanish bank account, which in practice becomes part of almost every purchase and mortgage process.
And if you’re planning to finance the purchase: an initial conversation with at least one lender, before you commit to a price.
The amounts in this stage are not large. Legal fees for early due diligence, NIE applications, translations, opening a bank account: together it adds up to a few hundred euros. But they need to be in place before anything else can move.
What people most underestimate at this stage: the NIE timeline. Applying from abroad through the Spanish consulate typically takes three to six weeks. Sometimes longer. A purchase can sometimes wait for a cédula. Forgotten paperwork can hold up the whole file.
The arras (contrato de arras penitenciales) is the preliminary purchase contract. It is the moment when the purchase becomes financially serious — and the moment when many buyers first realise that the timing of money matters more than the total.
Standard practice in Spain is a deposit of 10% of the agreed purchase price. On a property at €450,000, that is €45,000. Paid to the seller, usually within a few days of agreeing terms. Not at the notary. Not in three months. Now. That money counts toward the purchase later, but from that moment it is no longer in your account.
Three things about this moment are worth understanding clearly.
First: the arras binds both parties. If you pull out without a contractually valid reason, you forfeit the deposit. If the seller pulls out, they are generally required to pay you back double what they received.
Second: the arras and mortgage approval do not run in automatic sync. Bank processing alone takes several weeks. Total mortgage timelines for non-residents typically run between three and six months, depending on the file, the lender, and how prepared you are. After formal mortgage approval, there is a ten-day statutory reflection period before notary signing. Plan accordingly. Have your lawyer include a financing condition in the arras if your mortgage isn’t confirmed.
Third: the period between arras and notary is rarely shorter than eight weeks. The €45,000 you pay at the arras will have been gone from your account for weeks before the next stage even begins.
Sometimes a reservation contract (contrato de reserva) precedes the arras: a shorter, less formal agreement that takes the property off the market while due diligence runs. The reservation fee (typically €3,000 to €6,000) is credited against the arras deposit. No extra cost, but one more binding commitment to factor into your timeline.
Many buyers think: the bank will cover 70%. True. But that money isn’t there yet.
During the mortgage phase, costs arise before the transfer takes place. The main one is the valuation (tasación). Spanish banks will only accept a report from a homologado valuer — one recognised by the Banco de España. The valuation costs between €300 and €600 on average, is non-refundable if the mortgage doesn’t proceed, and is valid for six months. In our own file we paid €450.
The valuation figure is also where an unexpected complication can arise. Spanish banks lend against the lower of two figures: the purchase price or the appraised value. If the valuation comes in below the agreed price — which can happen in popular coastal markets where prices have moved fast — the bank lends against the lower figure. The buyer covers the gap from their own funds.
For many non-residents, financing runs between 60 and 70% of the purchase value. Non-EU buyers and UK buyers often see lower percentages, depending on the bank, the profile, and the file. At €450,000 and 70% financing: the bank lends €315,000, you bring €135,000 of your own money to the notary. Before closing costs.
One cost that under Ley 5/2019 does not generally fall to the buyer: the notary fees for the mortgage deed. These are normally paid by the bank. The buyer still pays the valuation and, if applicable, any arrangement fee. That said, the notary-deed saving alone is between €500 and €1,000 compared to the pre-2019 position. It rarely appears in guides aimed at international buyers.
→ More on LTV and borrowing limits: How much can you borrow in Spain as a non-resident → Buying a second home: Financing a second home in Spain
This is the second large outlay. And the day when most buyers fully understand why timing matters more than totals.
At the notary you pay:
In our own file, these costs came to a single figure: €55,488 in closing costs. Not because the property was unusual. But because most buyers underestimate how many separate items land at the same moment. That figure consisted roughly of transfer tax, notary fees for the purchase deed, land registry inscription, gestoría, and other transaction costs. The exact breakdown varies with every purchase, but the pattern holds: it is not one large item, it is multiple items falling simultaneously. The precise total depends on the purchase price, the applicable tax rate, and the structure of the file — but it gives a realistic sense of scale for a higher-value Catalan purchase.
One detail we had not anticipated: the bank required the apartment and the parking space to be transferred under separate deeds, each with its own stated purchase price. Two deeds, two sets of notary fees, two registry inscriptions. Not a large amount, but a surprise.
On the ITP in Catalonia: the progressive rate structure introduced in 2025 breaks the assumption that you simply pay 10% on the purchase price. Above certain thresholds the rate increases. Use the ITP calculator to work out the figure for your situation.
→ How the ITP rate structure works: ITP tax in Catalonia → Full breakdown of closing costs: Closing costs buying property in Spain → Calculate yourself: Catalonia buying costs · ITP Catalonia
And then it begins.
The month after the transfer is financially quieter than the run-up to it, but the costs start immediately and recur every year. IBI (municipal property tax): for a typical property in Baix Empordà, that runs between €600 and €800 per year. IRNR (non-resident income tax on imputed rental income): 19% for EU/EEA residents, calculated on 1.1% of the cadastral value. Buildings insurance: typically €250 to €500 per year. Community fees for apartments: €100 to €300 per month, depending heavily on the building and its facilities.
What we notice: buyers spend a lot of attention on the purchase costs and surprisingly little on the first twelve months after transfer. Yet that is exactly where insurance, taxes, community charges, and small adjustments add up fast.
If a renovation is also planned, those costs begin the moment the keys are in your hand. The permit process (licencia menor or mayor) runs before the first contractor can start work. Anyone who doesn’t build that into the financial plan is planning liquidity incorrectly.
→ Calculate recurring ownership costs: Annual cost of owning property in Spain → Estimate your renovation budget: Renovation cost Baix Empordà
In our own Catalan purchase file, the closing costs came to €55,488. That figure surprised us less than the timing of it.
The valuation had already been paid before the notary appointment. Legal fees ran through the entire process: €3,200 in total, covering everything from the preliminary contract to the final deed signing. The arras had taken €45,000 from the account weeks earlier. And at the notary, the remaining down payment, the ITP, and all the other costs had to be available simultaneously. One day. One account.
What we would have planned differently in hindsight: the availability of money per stage, not the total at the end.
The cédula de habitabilidad is the sharpest illustration of this. When we discovered that the existing cédula was no longer valid, we were looking at a renewal process of around six weeks. No major cost problem in itself. But a timing problem — and a timing problem becomes a money problem quickly when a mortgage, transfer, or renovation plan depends on it.
→ When the cédula becomes a problem: Cédula de habitabilidad: when it becomes a problem
For many non-residents buying in Catalonia, the combination of down payment and closing costs lands somewhere between 40 and 45% of the purchase price, depending on financing, tax rate, and file structure.
But that figure is only useful if you know when each part needs to be available.
Stage 2 comes early: €45,000 at the arras, weeks before the notary. Stage 3 requires the valuation. Stage 4 requires everything at once. And stage 5 begins the day after transfer, even if you’re barely there in those first months.
During our own purchase, the amount wasn’t the challenge. The sequence was. Since then, we look at the timeline first and the totals second — for every file we work on.
A Spanish purchase rarely falls apart because someone calculated the total wrong. Much more often, the stress comes from the right amount being needed at the wrong moment.
→ Calculate your own funds: Estimated own funds Spain → Full buying process checklist: Spain buying process
Want to map out your purchase before you start? Send us a message through the contact form. No obligations. No sales pitch. Just clarity.
Mortgage advice is provided by ACI-certified partners. Casa Connecta coordinates the process and does not provide mortgage advice itself.
→ Full guide: Buying property in Spain as a non-resident
How much of my own money do I need to buy property in Spain? For many non-residents in Catalonia, the combination of down payment and closing costs lands somewhere between 40 and 45% of the purchase price. The exact figure depends on your mortgage terms, the purchase price, and the applicable tax rate. In Catalonia, the progressive ITP rate structure means you typically sit at the higher end of that range. Buyers without a mortgage bring the full purchase price themselves.
When do I need the most cash during the purchase process? At two moments: at the arras (10% of the purchase price, due within days of signing) and at the notary (remaining down payment plus all closing costs simultaneously). Those two moments can be weeks or months apart — which means the money needs to be accessible early, not just available in theory by completion.
What are the closing costs when buying in Catalonia? ITP (progressive property transfer tax), notary fees for the purchase deed, land registry inscription, and gestoría. In our own file these came to €55,488. That figure is not a benchmark but a reference point: it shows the order of magnitude for a higher-value Catalan purchase. On top of that: legal fees (we paid €3,200, covering the full process) and valuation costs (€450 in our case).
When is the ITP due after a Spanish property purchase? The ITP must be paid within 30 days of the notary signing. In practice, the gestoría handles this on or shortly after the completion date, so the land registry inscription doesn’t face delays.
Does the buyer pay the notary fees for the mortgage deed? Generally not. Under Spain’s Ley 5/2019, the bank normally pays the notary fees for the mortgage deed. The buyer pays the notary fees for the purchase deed. This distinction rarely appears in buyer guides for international purchasers, but it saves a real €500 to €1,000.
Questions about your buying process? Email us at [email protected]. We reply within 24 hours on business days, in your language.
