Many clients start the conversation in a very similar way:
“We’ll just have a look on our own first, and if we choose something, then maybe we’ll contact an agency.”

Behind this is usually one idea — if we contact the developer or the owner directly, we will avoid commission and it will be cheaper.

This sounds logical… but not in the Spanish market.

The real estate sales system in Spain works very differently than in Poland and most European countries. A real estate agent here is not a person who simply “opens the door to the property”. In practice, they are somewhere between an advisor, coordinator, translator and process manager — and this process lasts months and begins long before the notary appointment.

Property price and the most common misunderstanding

The biggest surprise for buyers is that purchasing without an agency does not reduce the price.

Developers and sellers include the cost of sale in the property price from the very beginning. This means that the price of an apartment or villa is the same whether the client comes alone or with an agency. A developer has no mechanism to sell cheaper “because the buyer came without an agent”. The list price applies to everyone.

As a result, a buyer acting independently pays exactly the same, but takes on the entire burden of the process, documentation and communication — often in a foreign language and an unfamiliar legal system.

That is why, in Spain, an agent is not a cost. It is a service included in the same price.

What really happens after choosing a property

Most people think buying means: choosing a property, signing the deed and collecting the keys.

That is only the final stage.

The real process begins after the purchase decision. There is the NIE number, bank account, international transfers, reservation contracts, land registry documents, contact with a lawyer, preparation of the contract, verification of the owner’s data, checking debts, preparation of the notarial deed and coordination of payments.

Each of these stages requires monitoring deadlines and document accuracy. One incorrectly written name, the wrong transfer method or a missing attachment can delay the signing at the notary.

The agent is the person who supervises the process at all times and stays in contact simultaneously with the developer or owner, the lawyer, the bank and the notary. The client sees only the final result — a signed deed. Behind the scenes there are dozens of calls, emails and arrangements.

Help buyers do not expect

The biggest surprise usually comes after the purchase.

In Spain, signing the deed does not finish the matter. That is when practical life in the new property actually begins. Electricity and water must be transferred, the community of owners notified, internet and insurance arranged, and often the property must be furnished from scratch.

Here the agent’s role suddenly becomes very practical. In reality, this person often goes with the client to the furniture store, helps order a kitchen, translates conversations with utility companies, explains letters from the administration and shows how the tax system for non-residents works. For a Spaniard these are simple formalities; for someone who has just arrived — a completely new reality in another language.

Many buyers only then understand they did not purchase a “property search service”, but support in a foreign country.

Access to a market not visible online

A self-searching buyer sees a few developments found on portals. An agent works within a network of cooperating agencies, developers and lawyers. They have access to properties before publication, know which developments are reliable and which to avoid, understand real community costs, building technical issues and the history of a given urbanisation.

Often the most valuable role of an agent is not showing a property, but… advising against buying it.

The client does not see this — because they never buy the problem.

Document security

In Spain classic fraud is rare. Formal issues are far more common: undeclared extensions, terraces not registered, garages without legal status, community debts or differences between registry area and reality.

These problems are not visible during a viewing. They appear later — sometimes years later.

Therefore one of the agent’s most important tasks is ensuring that the lawyer checks the property before the buyer transfers any money.

Why many buyers change their mind

It often happens that a client initially wants to buy independently. After going through the full process they usually say one thing — if they did it again, they would have had an agent from the beginning.

Not because it is hard to find a property.
Because it is hard to buy it safely and then function normally afterwards.

Buying property in Spain is not only a transaction. It is entering the legal, administrative and everyday system of a foreign country. The agent becomes the person who guides you through that system step by step and remains available long after the keys are handed over.

And that is why, in practice, the most expensive option can be… buying without an agent.

Contact Costa Ibérica

• C. Ramón Gallud, 78, bajo B, 03181 Torrevieja, Alicante
  
• +34 644708520
• +34 865648065
• office@costaiberica.com