Buying a home on Tenerife as a foreigner

Get your NIE first

The NIE is your Spanish tax identification number. You need it to sign at the notary, pay the taxes and connect the utilities. You can apply at a police station for foreigners or a Spanish consulate, or give a lawyer power of attorney to do it for you.

Open a Spanish bank account at the same time. You will need it for the purchase and for paying local bills afterwards, and banks offer accounts for non-residents.

Have the home checked before you commit

This is where most of the risk sits, and where a good independent lawyer earns the fee. The nota simple from the land registry shows who owns the home and whether there are mortgages or charges on it. The cadastre should match what is actually there: extensions and pools are often not registered.

Ask for the occupancy certificate (cédula de habitabilidad), the energy certificate, the latest property tax (IBI) receipt and a statement from the community of owners saying there are no debts. If you plan to rent to holidaymakers, check the registration of the home and the community rules. Our guide on holiday rental explains why.

Reservation, deposit and contract

A small reservation fee usually takes the home off the market while your lawyer does the checks. Then you sign a private purchase contract and pay a deposit, typically 10% of the price. Under the usual type of contract (arras penitenciales), if you walk away you lose the deposit; if the seller walks away, they pay you double.

With a new build, you pay in stages during construction. By law those payments must be protected by a bank guarantee or insurance. Ask to see it before you pay.

Signing at the notary

You sign the deed (escritura) at a notary, who checks the identities and the registry but does not advise you. The rest of the price is paid at that moment, usually by bank cheque or transfer, and you get the keys. If you can’t be there, someone can sign for you with a power of attorney.

Your lawyer or the notary then has the taxes paid and the deed entered in the land registry. Only that last step gives you full protection against third parties.

What it costs, and how long it takes

Budget around 8 to 10% on top of the price for taxes, notary, registry and lawyer. Our guide on buying costs has worked examples. A resale purchase with no complications usually takes two to three months from reservation to keys, and a mortgage adds a few weeks.