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Paying the purchase of a Spanish property in stages: a story about family, trust and taxes
I just came back from a property completion in Fuengirola that has proved anything buy easy. While sipping an extremely hot americano in the plane, elbows locked between two passengers-I hate it when I get assigned the middle seat- I started to to convey into paper, well in this case it is a laptop, my…
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Uncle Jimmy has died: A practical case on intestacy rules on a Spanish estate
There is no better way to learn and update our knowledge than with life itself. Very often, a lawyer´s knowledge updates as new cases get through the door of the office. This is what happened with uncle Jimmy´s case. Obviously, this is not his real name but it is a name that could perfectly apply…
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Practical case: phishing and bank transfers on completion of a Spanish property purchase
Phishing is a type of online scam where hackers try to trick a person to provide personal information, like passwords, bank details, etc but it could also lead to misleading lawyers and trick them to make a bank transfer to the fraudsters´ bank account. I was in a property purchase completion this week at the…
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Under-declaration of the sale price of a Spanish property
Believe it or not, I still come across property transactions where one of the parties, usually the seller, asks for part of the sale price to be paid in cash or, even worse, paid with a bank transfer but not shown on the deeds. The first one is flagrantly illegal but the second is simply…
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SUBJECT TO MORTGAGE OR NOT SUBJECT TO MORTGAGE : THAT IS THE QUESTION
I have to confess—sometimes estate agents drive me crazy, especially here in my hometown of Barcelona. Don’t get me wrong; there are plenty of reliable and professional agents. But lately, probably due to the rising property prices in the city, I’ve noticed a recurring practice that really frustrates me. I’m talking about the buyer’s right…
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Varying a Spanish Will Using an English Deed of Variation
Most people familiar with the administration of an English estate know that a Deed of Variation can be used in England (and Wales) to change the distribution of an estate within two years of the date of death, provided certain criteria are met: That much is well-known — but what about foreign assets, such as…
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Returning the keys to the bank after the death of a relative
One of the first phrases that I learnt when I moved to the UK to work as a Spanish lawyer was “catch 22”. At the beginning I did not have a clue as to what it meant (‘a paradoxical situation from which an individual cannot escape because of contradictory rules or limitations’ says Wikipedia) but…
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Oxford, annual conference and Brexit
Antonio Guillen attended the annual conference of lawfirm Gunnercooke, where he is a partner, and met his colleagues, including Spanish lawyer Claudia Font, to talk about the progress of the firm as well as other interesting topics such as personal development, stress management and of course…Brexit. One of the things that Antonio pointed out to…
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Spanish bank accounts after death: why is so complicated to close the account?
Most of my legal work relates to the administration of Spanish estates where the deceased and the beneficiaries are British. Very often the estate is comprised by a property and a bank account. In those cases, the lawyer acting for the beneficiaries and executors needs to gather the necessary documentation to produce a Deed of…
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Renting property in Barcelona
Ah, Barcelona. Lovely city. Famous for its gastronomy, football, fashion and its Architecture, specially buildings designed by Antoni Gaudi such as the Sagrada Familia, Casa Mila or Parc Güell. A very cosmopolitan city with inhabitants of all countries and cultures. Also a great place for foreign remote workers and professionals…
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