The price that we display for all of our properties is "the price that you pay"
This is the sale price that the seller has agreed and it and includes our commission.
If you see any of our properties for sale at higher prices, BEWARE
If you see our properties for sale through other estate agents at higher prices (often significantly so), then you should be very cautious. There are a number of reasons that will explain this expensive discrepancy.
- Many "English" speaking agents add on an additional fee, over and above the actual sale price. This explains the difference between their prices and ours. This means that they are taking a standard commission from the seller and a separate lump sum (often several thousand euros) from the buyer. This may not be ethical, but it is perfectly legal and it is common practice for many agents selling to foreigners.
- Some unethical agents will try to sell properties for which they have no agreement with the vendor or another agent. They do this by taking the details from competitors’ websites and then adding their commission on top of the legitimate price.
If they find a buyer, they approach the vendor knowing that the contracted agent will still get their sellers commission (because of contractual obligations) whilst you pay the additional fee to the "illegitimate" agent.
- There are no fixed rates of commission or fee structures for estate agents in Spain. Because of this, all agents are free to agree their own commission rates with vendors and some agents are simply "greedier" than others. Amazingly, this can see some agent adding as much as 10% on top of the price that the vendor actually wants.
How to buy property in Galicia with security
Check out properties, check out prices, check out agents, and if the agent that you are dealing with does not want you to appoint a solicitor, approach the transaction with extreme caution, or better still, not at all.