How do we sell a property owned by four different persons, one of which has died?

Property Law

Antonio Flores Vila

22nd of August 2001

Q. First of all, i apologize for my bad english because i’m french. I have 2/3 questions for the sale of our house in Spain (EL CAMPELLO ALICANTE)

We bought this house in 88 in two parts :

• One : 2/3 for my mother and her husband
• Two : 1/3 for my husband and me

My mother and his husband were resident in Spain until the death of him (+/- 7 years ago). And she “forgot” to declare to the spanish administration this death (in fact she doesn’t know that she has to do that she made it in belgium because he died in brussel)

This man has 3 children.

Now we need to sale this house why my mother is now resident in France and we have a lot of questions about that; i hope that you can help us.

• What does she have to do (my mother) to make all the things concerning the death of her husband regarding the administration and if it is possible a vue of the cost for that?
• This house have a big “sous-sol” and we have during our vacancy amenaged a little apartment in it. Have we to declare this as an “obranueva” and once again is the cost of that?
• For the two things : is it some “interets de retard” (sorry I don’t know the term)
• What documents we need for the sale (my "beap-père" has 3 children in life)? We are all belgians and a procuration for somebody made in one notaire in belgium by all the other is it good for the spain notario?
• And the last question : in belgium when we want to sell a house with an agent immobilier usually they ask for a "mandat exclusif" (it mean's that anybody else can’t sale this house) and this for a 3 ou 6 months : Is it the same in Spain?

All this are very important for us before we will come to Spain (next week in fact) I know it’s short for having an answer but who knows...... But a big THANKS YOU and congratulations for your site it’s very helpful.

Anonymous

A. Basically, all the owners on the deeds have to sign to sell the property, either by themsleves or by means of a power of attorney to someone else.

If your mother´s husband died, and he is a title deed holder, you shall need to follow an inheritance procedure before a Notary Public, so that the heir can then sell. Otherwise, the property cannot be fully sold as one title deed holder cannot sign (as he died).

The obra nueva you do not need to declare unless you wish. It can be arranged that one of the conditions of the sale is that the property is sold without you having to do the obra nueva, basically all the cost on the new buyer.

You do need to hire a lawyer to arrange all the paperwork. Some of it may be arranged in Belgium, and the rest in Spain.

The legal cost of the work depends on the complexity, but I would say around 450.000 ptas (2700 Euro).

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