Useful information
NIE, nota simple, notary, comunidad de propietarios: the terms of Spanish property transactions, explained by someone who uses them every week.
Updated on
In brief
NIE, nota simple, notary, comunidad de propietarios: the terms of Spanish property transactions, explained by someone who uses them every week. These are the guides I write, Luca, for people who want to buy or sell property in the Canaries: one question per guide, the answer in the opening lines, official sources at the bottom with the date. If your question isn't here, message me.
12 guides
1-euro houses in the Canary Islands: the truthThere's no 1-euro house scheme in the Canary Islands: those schemes belong to depopulating Italian towns. Where the myth comes from, and what's real.
Cost of living in the Canary Islands: what you really spendWhat people really spend in the Canary Islands: household budgets, inflation, IGIC vs IVA, fuel and incomes, with official tables and their year.
How many Italians live in the Canary Islands: the official numbers55,553 Italians were resident in the Canary Islands at 1 January 2025, the largest foreign community: numbers per island and town, official tables.
How much does a small house really cost in the Canary IslandsThe real maths behind a small 40-60 m² property in the Canary Islands: floor area times the official value per square metre, plus the purchase tax.
Where houses cost less in the Canary Islands: the official figuresThe average value per square metre in the Canary Islands, province by province and town by town, from the official first-quarter 2026 tables.
The Canary Islands property market in numbers: where to find the real dataINE, Registradores, Notariado and ISTAC: the four public sources on the Spanish and Canarian property market, what they publish and how to read them.
The comunidad de propietarios in Spain: how it really worksHow a comunidad de propietarios (owners' association) works: the participation share, reserve fund, majorities, and the debts a buyer can inherit.
Contrato de arras: the Spanish deposit contract explainedThe contrato de arras locks in a property before the notary: the three types of arras, what happens if someone pulls out, what I check before signing.
Retiring to the Canary Islands: residency, healthcare, taxesResidency, healthcare and taxes for EU citizens retiring to the Canary Islands: the registration certificate, the tarjeta sanitaria and tax treaties.
Signing at the notary in Spain: what happens on the dayWho's there, what you sign, how you pay, and what the notary checks when you buy property in Spain. And what happens to the deed right after signing.
The NIE to buy a house in Spain: what it is and how to applyWhat the NIE is, why you can't buy without it, how to apply in Spain or at the Spanish consulate in your country (form EX-15, fee 790/012).
Nota simple: how to read it before making an offerThe nota simple shows who owns a property, whether there's a mortgage, and how it's described: how to request it, what it costs, what I check first.
Frequently asked questions
What do the «Useful information» guides cover?
NIE, nota simple, notary, comunidad de propietarios: the terms of Spanish property transactions, explained by someone who uses them every week. There's one intent: what it is, how it works. Each guide answers a single question and links back to the site's core pages, so a doubt leads you to a home.
Who writes them?
I'm Luca: I've lived in the Canaries since 2014, have run a business here since 2017, and look after the property side of Toda Canarias. I write in the first person about what I get clients to do.
When are the next ones coming?
Two guides a week, on Tuesdays and Fridays, following a schedule that covers the most frequent questions. Categories fill up over time: the one that's empty today will be full in a few weeks.
See also
- Property for sale in the Canaries
- Businesses for sale
- Buying property in the Canaries: the guide
- The property finder: we find your home
- Selling property in the Canaries: the guide
- Taxes and costs of a property in the Canaries
- Investing in the Canaries
- Moving to the Canaries
- Taking over a business: the guide to traspaso
- Luca's guides
- The islands, one by one
- About us and contact
Images marked AI are generated with artificial intelligence.