Buying a home in another country raises a practical question before any other: what happens, in which order, and who is present at each stage. The three steps below describe the cooperativa route, as it applies to our own project Sueños del Mar; the developments we market for third parties follow a different schedule, set out further down. In the cooperativa model no financial risk arises before the mortgage has been approved.
Step one: the reservation
A deposit of between €1,000 and €3,000 secures the villa. It is paid into an account designated in the reservation agreement, not to us directly. The amount is refunded in accordance with the terms of that agreement — including in the event that your financing is not approved.
Step two: the down payment
The equity contribution amounts to 20 % of the price and covers the land, the building licence and the start of construction. Every euro paid at this stage is protected by an individual bank guarantee, as required by the Spanish Building Act.
Step three: financing
The balance is paid from the start of construction through a Spanish mortgage, arranged with leading Spanish banks and with lenders accustomed to international buyers. It can be settled in instalments, or in cash if you prefer.
Two structures, not one
The steps above apply to the cooperativa, where you join as a member and the homes are built at cost. Sunway Residence and Essence Residence are different: they are third-party developments that we market exclusively, bought in the classical way from a developer. There the schedule runs in four stages — a reservation of 10,000 € that takes the unit off the market, 30 % plus VAT on signing the private contract, a further 20 % plus VAT six months later, and the remaining 50 % plus VAT on completion, when the keys are handed over.
The two routes should not be mixed. Cooperativa terms — cost price, membership, the guarantees described above — apply only to projects identified as cooperativa; how that structure works is set out in a separate entry. For the developments we market, the terms are those of the respective developer, and the price is the market price.
The notary appointment
Every contractual step of the purchase is witnessed by the notarial office of Navas Hidalgo & Pino Lozano — D. José Andrés Navas Hidalgo and D. Juan Pino Lozano — in central Málaga, recognised by the Spanish College of Notaries. The notary is independent of the seller and of us: their role is to establish that what is signed corresponds to what was agreed.
Alongside the notary, an independent lawyer and economist, Adolfo Campos Fernández, accompanies international buyers through the legal, fiscal and bureaucratic side: the NIE application, anti-money-laundering clearance, the Spanish bank account and the cooperativa statutes — in your own language.
The handover
What is handed over is a complete, ready-to-live home: finished kitchen with appliances, finished bathrooms, climate control, private pool, terraces, garden and garage as per plan. Before construction begins, finishes and materials can be configured at cost, so the handover reflects the decisions taken earlier rather than a standard specification.
The three steps are also summarised on the home page.
Amounts and conditions follow the reservation agreement and the cooperativa statutes in each case; this article describes the usual sequence and is not a contractual document. Deposits are secured by bank guarantee under the Spanish Building Act (Ley 38/1999, modified by Ley 20/2015). The award of the home is subject to the reduced 10 % VAT applicable to new-build housing in Spain.