Anyone visiting the Costa Blanca will already have noticed, on every street corner you see real estate agencies. This is partly because Spain is a popular country to buy a vacation home. The other reason is the fact that real estate agent in Spain is a free profession. You can practice this profession without any training. Also, there is no legislation requiring an estate agent to obtain certain diplomas.

Mandatory training for real estate agents

This will now change. Starting in October, every real estate agent who sells homes on the Costa Blanca must have the proper papers. At the moment, this only concerns the region of Comunidad Valencia, which includes Costa Blanca. For the other regions of Spain, no rules apply at this time.

• In order to meet all legal obligations, an estate agent must:
• Complete an approved training as an estate agent in Spain, followed by an exam
• Open a guarantee fund in the amount of at least 60,000 euros
• Open a professional liability insurance of at least 600,000 euros
• Have an office that is accessible to clients, by appointment or otherwise

This legislation also applies to estate agents who do not live or work in Spain on a permanent basis. So from now on, a Dutch real estate agent who helps you look for your dream home in Spain must also have the right papers. In addition, the Dutch real estate agent is required to not only have a physical office in Spain, but also a Spanish tax entity and a Spanish VAT number.

Realtors outside the region

Realtors operating outside the comunidad Valencia are not yet required to have the proper papers. However, a real estate agent who does not have the proper papers may no longer offer properties in the region comunidad Valencia. For example, a real estate agent with an office and Spanish entity in Murcia, may not sell properties in the region comunidad Valencia if he does not have the proper papers.

Mandatory from Oct. 16

The legislation goes into effect from Monday, Oct. 16, 2023. Officially, a real estate agent who does not have the proper papers may no longer practice his profession. If you are going to buy a vacation home in Spain, you can of course ask your estate agent for his papers. These can be identified by the initial code RAICV- followed by 4 digits.

Source: Immo-toro