New Developments
in Vélez-Málaga

No. Spain closed the Golden Visa property investment route on 3 April 2025 under Organic Law 1/2025. Non-EU nationals may no longer obtain residency by purchasing real estate, regardless of amount. If you require a residence permit you must now qualify under a different visa category: non-lucrative residency (sufficient passive income, no work permitted), digital nomad visa (remote employment for non-Spanish employer), employment visa (Spanish job offer), or entrepreneur visa (business plan approved by ENISA). Property ownership alone does not confer residency rights. Existing Golden Visa holders approved before 3 April 2025 retain their permits through the renewal cycle. If residency is your primary objective, consult an immigration lawyer before contracting property; Roccabox does not provide visa or immigration advice.

A completed unit allows notary signing within four to six weeks, immediate occupancy, and physical inspection of the finished property before you commit. You see the actual kitchen, the terrace orientation, the noise from the neighbouring road. Off-plan purchase means you buy from floor plans and CGI; you cannot walk the apartment because it does not yet exist. The trade-off is price and specification input: developers discount off-plan units by five to twelve per cent against completed inventory, and you may negotiate tile, kitchen, or bathroom upgrades during construction. Payment schedules differ, off-plan contracts stage payments across twelve to twenty-four months, spreading cash outflow but locking you into a build timeline you do not control. Completed units require nearly full payment at notary signing. Schedule risk sits entirely with off-plan buyers; if the developer delays handover your deposit is tied up and you may face overlap between current rent and mortgage payments. Off-plan suits buyers with time flexibility and tighter budgets; completed units suit those who need certainty or plan to occupy within three months.

Reservation deposit, €3,000 to €6,000, holds the unit for ten to fifteen days while you instruct a lawyer. Once you sign the private contract, you pay a second deposit, typically ten per cent of purchase price. For completed units, the remaining ninety per cent is due at notary signing four to six weeks later. For off-plan or under-construction units, the developer may ask for stage payments: a common structure is ten per cent at private contract, twenty per cent at foundation pour, twenty per cent at roof, twenty per cent at first-fix mechanical, and thirty per cent at handover. Some developers simplify to ten per cent at contract and ninety per cent on completion, eliminating interim payments. If stage payments exceed ten per cent before completion, Spanish law requires the developer to provide a bank guarantee protecting your deposits if the project fails. Your lawyer verifies the guarantee is in place before you transfer stage funds. Reservation deposits are usually refundable if you withdraw during the cooling-off window; the ten per cent private-contract deposit is forfeited if you breach contract. Payment is by bank transfer; developers do not accept cash above €1,000 under anti-money-laundering rules.

Because no sub-zone branding distinguishes the tracked projects, your decision rests on proximity to specific amenities. Developments near Torre del Mar offer walkable beach access, a concentration of bars and restaurants, and a seasonal tourism economy; those closer to the historic Vélez town centre trade beach proximity for year-round services, lower tourist density, and easier parking. Inland-edge schemes may include larger plots or villa options but add ten minutes' drive to the coast. Visit each site: check road noise, verify that the marketed sea view actually exists from the unit's floor level, and assess whether the urbanización will feel complete or half-empty if only half the homes sell. Request the community budget, monthly fees for a two-bedroom apartment in a lift-equipped block typically run €40 to €80, and confirm what is included (garden maintenance, pool, building insurance). Ask whether the development connects to mains drainage or uses a treatment plant, which affects future fees. Walk the neighbourhood at different times: a quiet street at 11 a.m. may host a bar terrace at midnight. Roccabox provides site-visit logistics, a comparison matrix of specifications and payment schedules, and translator accompaniment if needed.

Purchase price: €400,000. IVA at ten per cent: €40,000. Actos Jurídicos Documentados stamp duty at 1.5 per cent: €6,000 (calculated on €400,000). Notary fees: approximately €1,200. Land Registry inscription: approximately €800. Independent lawyer: €3,500 to €5,000 plus IVA. Total circa €451,500 to €453,500, or 12.9 to 13.4 per cent above purchase price. If you finance with a mortgage, add valuation fee (€300 to €500), bank arrangement fee (typically 0.5 to 1.0 per cent of loan), and mortgage notary/registry costs (another €1,000 to €1,500). After completion, annual costs include Impuesto sobre Bienes Inmuebles (IBI) property tax, roughly 0.4 to 0.6 per cent of cadastral value, waste collection (€150 to €250), community fees (€480 to €960 per year for a typical two-bedroom), and buildings insurance (€200 to €350). If you let the property, rental income is subject to non-resident income tax at 19 per cent for EU/EEA nationals, 24 per cent for others, with deductible expenses limited by Spanish tax law. These figures are illustrative; your lawyer will provide exact calculations based on your chosen unit and financing structure.

Spanish banks lend to non-resident buyers but at lower loan-to-value than for residents. Expect a maximum of sixty to seventy per cent LTV, meaning you must provide a thirty to forty per cent deposit plus taxes and costs. Interest rates for non-residents run 0.5 to 1.0 percentage points above resident rates; current fixed-rate offers sit near 3.5 to 4.5 per cent for ten or fifteen years, variable rates link to Euribor plus 1.2 to 1.8 per cent margin. Banks require: passport, proof of non-Spanish income (employment contract or three months' payslips or accountant-certified self-employment figures), non-Spanish bank statements covering six months, and Spanish NIE tax number (obtained before mortgage application). Processing takes six to ten weeks. Some banks refuse to lend on off-plan property until the development is at roof height; others require completion before releasing funds, which forces you to arrange bridging finance or pay stage payments from cash. Mortgage terms run to age seventy-five at end of term, effectively capping loan duration for older buyers. Arrangement fees, valuation, notary, and mortgage registry add roughly two per cent to loan amount. Roccabox does not broker mortgages but refers buyers to independent mortgage advisors who compare multiple banks; you are free to arrange financing directly.