{"id":33568,"date":"2026-03-10T09:47:16","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T08:47:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/?p=33568"},"modified":"2026-03-10T09:47:19","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T08:47:19","slug":"defects-when-buying-spanish-property","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/gebreken-bij-de-aankoop-van-spaans-vastgoed\/","title":{"rendered":"Hidden defects when buying Spanish property: what if you discover them before the transfer?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p id=\"p-rc_4e4ccebfa4a4d25f-19\">Defects in the purchase of Spanish property are sometimes discovered even before the deed of sale is executed .Suppose: you have signed the private purchase agreement for your dream home in Spain, but during a final inspection or technical inspection suddenly discovers serious defects. The official transfer of ownership at the notary (the <em>escritura<\/em>) has yet to take place. What are your rights under Spanish law? In this blog, we explain why the timing of discovery is essential and what steps you can take\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The legal status of the private sale agreement<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"p-rc_4e4ccebfa4a4d25f-20\">In Spain, a private purchase agreement (known as a \u2018compromise\u2019 in Belgium) is immediately binding as soon as there is agreement on the property and the price. Although the notarial deed is required for registration in the property register, the contractual obligations are already a fact after the first signature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Breach of contract vs \u201cVicios Ocultos\u201d<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"p-rc_4e4ccebfa4a4d25f-21\">We normally speak at <strong>hidden defects <\/strong>about <em>vicios ocultos<\/em> (Articles 1484-1490 Spanish Civil Code). The warranty for hidden defects in the case of resale is very short: only 6 months. We therefore recommend appointing an architect or expert to check the property before purchase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"p-rc_4e4ccebfa4a4d25f-21\">However, when defects come to light <strong>before<\/strong> the execution of the deed, Spanish courts often apply a different regime: <strong>breach of contract<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"p-rc_4e4ccebfa4a4d25f-21\">This is because the seller has a duty to deliver the property in the condition agreed. Is he unable to do so? Then Article 1124 of the Civil Code comes into effect, paving the way for dissolution of the contract.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/defects\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/gebreken\/\">Learn more about hidden defects here.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What options do you have as a buyer?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Depending on the severity of the damage, there are three common routes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Repair of defect:<\/strong> You can demand that the seller repairs the damage before the sale is finalised. This may lead to a postponement of the transfer.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Renegotiation of price:<\/strong> You accept the property in its current condition, but at a lower purchase price.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Termination of contract:<\/strong> In case of very serious, structural defects that affect habitability or safety, you can cancel the purchase completely. You will then be entitled to a refund of your payments<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><strong>Opinion<\/strong>: To guarantee restitution, it is important that you work with a third-party account and do not transfer payments directly to the owner's account.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The role of ten-year insurance (Seguro Decenal)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"p-rc_4e4ccebfa4a4d25f-26\">New-build homes in Spain are compulsorily covered by a 10-year insurance policy. This insurance covers fundamental issues such as damage to foundations and load-bearing walls. This guarantee also applies to future owners of the building. So if you buy a property within 10 years of its completion, you can claim against the architect or builder for structural defects that affect the structure and stability. This can be an alternative route to get defects fixed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p id=\"p-rc_4e4ccebfa4a4d25f-26\"><strong>Note<\/strong>: things like moisture problems, insulation or finishing defects are usually covered here <strong>not<\/strong> below.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Roadmap in case of serious damage<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Should you encounter defects before you have past the deed of sale, we recommend the following steps:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Technical confirmation:<\/strong> Get an official report from an architect or engineer immediately.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Formal notice of default:<\/strong> Send a <em>burofax<\/em> to the seller reporting the damage and possibly announcing the rescission of the sale.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Freezing funds:<\/strong> Are the funds in a third-party account? If so, they must be held in the event of a dispute until there is a resolution or court ruling.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Judicial consignment:<\/strong> If the parties cannot reach an agreement, the money can be deposited with the court for safekeeping (<em>consignaci\u00f3n<\/em>) to ensure independence.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p id=\"p-rc_4e4ccebfa4a4d25f-31\"><strong>Opinion:<\/strong> Make sure the private sale agreement includes the option to have an architect inspect the property before the authentic sale deed is executed. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/luxury-property-in-spain-technical-expertise\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/luxevastgoed-in-spanje-technische-expertise\/\">Learn more about the importance of such an inspection here.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>If you have questions when buying a property in Spain or wish to <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/buying-in-spain\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/kopen-in-spanje\/\">legal support<\/a><\/strong>? Then feel free to take <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/contact\/\">contact<\/a> <\/strong>on. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Defects when buying Spanish property: what if you discover them before the transfer? In this article, we talk about the action points.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":33571,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[138,150],"tags":[970,971],"class_list":["post-33568","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aankoop-in-spanje","category-praktisch","tag-gebreken-bij-de-aankoop-van-spaans-vastgoed","tag-technische-expertise"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33568","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33568"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33568\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33572,"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33568\/revisions\/33572"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33568"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33568"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.confianz.be\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33568"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}