The Buying Guide

We begin with a conversation, not a viewing schedule. Before showing you anything, we want to know what the property is for: how many weeks a year you will use it, whether it needs to earn rental income, how you feel about driving for groceries, and what your genuine ceiling is including purchase costs. Those answers usually rule out half the island, which saves everyone a great deal of time.

Every property we then show you has been through our verification process, which means it was visited in person, measured against its floor plan and checked against the Land Registry. A viewing trip with us typically covers six to ten properties over two or three unhurried days, with time in the areas themselves: a coffee in the village, a walk on the beach, the drive you would actually do weekly. You are choosing a life as much as a building.

When you find the property, two things happen in short order. A reservation deposit, a modest sum sized to the property and agreed in writing, takes it off the market and freezes the price for an agreed period, usually a few weeks. The deposit is credited against the purchase price and is normally refundable if the legal checks uncover a problem, and the exact terms are written into the reservation form you sign.

At the same time, you appoint an independent lawyer. Independent means exactly that: chosen by you, paid by you, acting for you alone. Never the developer’s recommended office and never ours by default, though we will gladly introduce several for you to interview. The fee is fixed and quoted in advance. Your lawyer will conduct the title search, draft or review the contract and, with a power of attorney if you wish, handle the rest without you needing to be on the island.

Your lawyer’s first job is the title search: confirming the deed class, the registered owner, the boundaries, and that the property is free of mortgages, memorandums and unpaid taxes. Only then is the contract of sale signed. A good contract specifies the price and payment schedule, exactly what is included, completion dates with penalties for off plan purchases, and who pays which taxes at which moment.

Within twenty one days of signing, the contract is registered at the District Land Office. This registration is your central protection: it prevents the property being sold twice or mortgaged after your purchase, and it gives you full contractual rights while the formalities complete. Your lawyer then applies for your purchase permission from the Council of Ministers. This is a routine application for almost all European buyers, it commonly takes from a few months to a year, and it runs in the background while you use the property freely.

Property here is priced in pounds sterling or euros, and payments are made by ordinary international bank transfer to accounts named in the contract, never in cash and never to an account that does not match the contracting party. For off plan purchases, a sound schedule keeps the payment on contract proportionate, with the balance in stage payments tied to construction milestones your lawyer can verify.

Budget for the taxes and fees on top of the price. The current headline rates: stamp duty at 0.5 per cent within twenty one days of signing, VAT at 5 per cent on new builds, and a title transfer fee of 9 per cent for foreign buyers when the deed transfers, plus legal fees and small registration charges. A specialist currency broker rather than your high street bank usually improves the exchange rate itself, which is real money at these amounts.

For a new build, do not accept the keys until the snagging is done. We carry out a room by room inspection with a written snag list covering finishes, doors and windows, plumbing, electrics and external works, and the developer is given a defined period to correct it before handover is signed. It is normal for a first snag list to run to dozens of small items; what matters is that they are recorded and resolved, and that a retention or the final payment gives the developer a reason to hurry.

Handover day itself is pleasantly administrative. Meters are read and utilities transferred into your name, keys and any warranties are handed across, and for resale purchases the final balance moves through your lawyer against the signed transfer documents. We are present for every client handover, and afterwards we help with the unglamorous first jobs: internet installation, insurance, and a reliable person to hold a spare key.

Our involvement does not end at the door. In the months after handover, the title transfer completes once your purchase permission is granted. Your lawyer pays the transfer fee, and the deed is registered in your name at the Land Office. If the property will be let, we introduce vetted management companies, and we would rather you compare two or three than take a single recommendation on faith.

If you are moving rather than holidaying, the residence permit comes next: proof of ownership or a registered contract, evidence of income, a health check and a certain patience with morning queues. First applications are annual, with longer term status available after several years. We walk every relocating client through it, and our honest advice is to start within your first month, when your paperwork from the purchase is fresh and to hand.