New Developments in Marbella and the Costa del Sol

New developments in Marbella and the Costa del Sol

Everything on this page is sold directly by the developer, and every price is the developer’s own list price: there is no premium for buying through us, and you get our due diligence on top. The stock runs from apartments and penthouses in the golf valley of Nueva Andalucía and along the New Golden Mile to villas in Marbella East, the Estepona hills and Benahavís, and it changes every week as phases open and sell out. Resale property, homes that have already been lived in, is catalogued separately on the buy page.

Off-plan, under construction and key-ready

The three words describe the same development at three points in its life, and the price and the risk move together. Off-plan is bought from the plans and the show apartment, usually a year or more before delivery, at the lowest price the development will ever be sold at and with the widest choice of units. Under construction is the middle: the building is out of the ground, the price list has usually moved once, and delivery is inside a year. Key-ready is finished stock, sometimes the last units of a phase, sometimes a whole development held back; you see exactly what you are buying and can move in on completion. Which is right depends on how you feel about waiting, and on whether you are buying to live in, to let, or to hold.

How buying new build works in Spain

A reservation of typically €6,000 to €20,000 takes the unit off the market. The private purchase contract follows within a few weeks with a first payment, usually 20 to 30 percent including the reservation, and stage payments may follow during construction; every euro paid before completion must by law be covered by a bank guarantee or insurance policy in your name, and we do not let a client sign without seeing it. Completion is at the notary once the first occupation licence is issued. Costs run higher than on a resale: VAT at 10 percent and stamp duty at 1.2 percent in Andalucía instead of the 7 percent transfer tax, plus notary, registry and legal fees, so allow 13 to 14 percent on top of the price. Our buyers guide works the numbers through on a real example.

Where new build is being built

New construction follows land, so it clusters where land was still available: the New Golden Mile and the hills above it in Estepona, the golf valley and the eastern side of Marbella, and the slopes of Benahavís. Our area pages describe each community for buyers of any kind: Nueva Andalucía, the Golden Mile, Los Monteros, La Quinta and Sierra Blanca. For the towns, start with the guides to Marbella, Estepona and Benahavís, and for what the town halls are approving, our note on Marbella’s new general plan.

How we work with new build buyers

We check the developer’s licence and the bank guarantee before you reserve, read the sector’s planning position and the building specification, compare the price list against what has actually been deeded nearby, and stay with you through the stage payments to the snagging inspection and the keys. Most of our clients buy from a distance; the process is built for that. The market data library holds the quarterly reports behind our advice.

Questions new build buyers ask us