Guide to the nota simple in Spain
What is a nota simple?
How does the service work?
What if the nota simple says there is no house in this land. Can I still buy the property?
What land can I build on in Spain?
What is a nota simple?
A nota simple is a report from the Property Registry that describes the property. Information about the property usually includes:
- whether the property has debts, usually for mortgages or unpaid taxes.
- the current owner
- the boundaries
- the total square meters of the land, and of the house if there is one.
- how the land has been classified: rústico, urbano, or urbanizable.
- the rights that others may have on the property, such as public paths/roads, water or sewage lines.
In Spain, debts may be tied to a property rather than to the owner of the property. When the owner goes to sell this property, these debts are apparent to the prospective buyer.
How does the service work?
You send us the information to identify the property. We send you the nota simple, including a brief summary in English concerning any debts on this property.
The information can be any or all of the following:
- the full address of the property, including the province
- the name and NIF of the owner
- the Property Registry's data (Tomo, Libro, Sección, Folio)
The more information you provide about the property, the easier the Property Registry can find it.
Regarding addresses, a real estate broker once told us "the property is rural. It doesn't have an address". This is not true. Every property in Spain has an address, even if it's just "Parcela 85" in a particular town.
What if the nota simple says there is no house in this land. Can I still buy the property?
Yes. The typical case is a house illegally built on land classified as rústico. The value of the house is a lot less, but the notary will let you buy the property. If you do, you have two choices.
- You can try to register the house, though if it was illegally built, this will be very difficult.
- You can do nothing and hope that you can find a buyer to pay at least what you paid for it.
Be aware, though, that if a house is illegally built, the government may decide to tear it down at any time. This doesn't happen too often, but it does happen. In 2000, the government tore down Antonio Banderas' mansion, along with 50 other mansions around it.