Preparing the total purchase budget

What the budget is made of

The asking price is only part of the budget. Split the purchase into six blocks: price, purchase tax, completion costs (notary, land registry, gestor), financing, works and contingency. Every line needs a source: who gave you the figure and when.

Keep tax lines provisional until a tax adviser has checked your situation. The rate depends on who sells, what is being sold and who buys, so the same flat can be taxed in different ways.

Purchase tax: ITP or VAT plus AJD

When a private individual sells, the buyer pays ITP (transfer tax). When a developer sells a new home for the first time, the buyer pays IVA (VAT) and AJD (stamp duty on notarised documents). For transactions from 27 June 2025 the Agència Tributària de Catalunya (ATC) applies the scale below. The ATC's own example: a house at €700,000 gives €60,000 plus 11% of €100,000, a total of €71,000.

The ITP base is the highest of three figures: the cadastral reference value (valor de referencia), the declared value and the contract price. The tax is filed on form 600 and paid within one month of the transaction. Full breakdown: property purchase taxes in Catalonia.

Notary, land registry and gestor

In Catalonia the buyer pays for the escritura (the notarised deed of sale), the first copy and registration in the Registro de la Propiedad, unless the contract allocates costs differently. Notary and registrar fees follow official scales (Real Decreto 1426/1989 and 1427/1989), so the base fee is the same at any notary. At a price of €300,000 the basic notary fee is about €388 and the registry fee about €205 (our calculation from the scales, before copies and extra pages). Ask the notary for an exact figure before signing. Details: notary costs when buying.

A gestor charges whatever you agree. The plusvalía municipal (tax on the increase in land value) is paid by the seller unless the parties agree otherwise; according to the Generalitat, the seller's agent is a seller's cost.

If you buy with a mortgage

• Valuation (tasación) is paid by the borrower.
• The bank pays the notary for the mortgage deed, registration of the charge, the gestoría and the AJD on the mortgage (Ley 5/2019).
• Property insurance required by the bank is the borrower's cost.
• Your own funds. According to the Banco de España, banks usually lend no more than 80% of the appraised value for a main home. Plan to cover the rest of the price and all purchase costs yourself. More: mortgages for non-residents.
• Affordability guide. The Generalitat suggests that the mortgage payment should not exceed 35% of household income. It is a benchmark for checking the budget, not a rule.

Works, contingency and running costs

The cost of works should come from an architect or builder after a visit, not from the listing or an average figure found online. Keep a separate contingency line: the law sets no amount, so the decision is yours.

Annual costs start after completion. In Barcelona IBI (property tax) uses a general rate of 0.66% applied to a base derived from the cadastral value. Fees for the comunidad de propietarios (the owners' association of the building) appear in the approved building budget, which also includes the fondo de reserva (at least 5% of common expenses) and any derramas (special levies) for works. Ask the property manager for the budget and recent minutes. If the seller is a non-resident individual, the buyer withholds 3% of the price and pays it to the tax office: the total stays the same, but the payment flow changes.

Who confirms each figure, and what a delay changes

• Tax: a tax adviser or gestor, using the ATC tables and your status.
• Notary and registry: the notary's estimate before signing.
• Mortgage: the FEIN, the bank's binding offer, handed over at least 10 calendar days before signing.
• Works: a written quote after a visit.
• Comunidad: the building budget and a debt certificate from the property manager.
• Delay. Rules change: until 27 June 2025 the 10% ITP rate applied up to €1,000,000. Before a new date, recheck rates, the validity of the bank offer and the deadlines in the deposit contract.

Guide updated on 26.10.2026.