Snagging and Handover: Inspecting Your New-Build Before Completion

Snagging and handover is the point where a Costa del Sol new-build stops being a plan and becomes the home you are about to own. Snagging means inspecting the finished property in detail and listing every fault, from a scratched worktop to a door that will not close, before you sign the escritura and hand over the final payment. For a foreign buyer who may be inspecting remotely or on a short trip, getting this stage right is the difference between a quick fix under warranty and a long argument once the money has changed hands. This guide explains how to inspect a new-build before completion, what your legal safety net is, and which documents to demand at handover.

Why the handover inspection matters on the Costa del Sol

Once you sign the deed of sale before a notary and pay the balance, your leverage drops sharply. Before that moment the developer wants your completion, so a documented defect list is a powerful tool. After completion you still hold strong statutory guarantees under Spanish law, but you now have to chase the developer rather than simply withhold your signature. The practical rule is simple: inspect thoroughly, put everything in writing, and do not let anyone rush you into signing on the same day you first see the finished unit.

Many Costa del Sol buyers are non-resident and cannot attend in person. If that is you, appoint someone to snag on your behalf under a power of attorney: your independent lawyer, a chartered surveyor, or a specialist snagging company. Insist on time-stamped photos and video of every room and every reported fault. This links closely to the wider buying-process topics of due diligence, powers of attorney and choosing an independent lawyer, all of which you should have settled long before handover.

When to inspect: before you sign the escritura

Your purchase contract normally sets a completion window. Ask for the snagging inspection to be scheduled once the developer notifies you that the property is finished, and crucially before the completion date, not on it. A sensible sequence is: the developer confirms completion, you inspect and issue a defect list, the developer remedies the agreed items, you re-inspect, and only then do you sign the deed and pay the balance. Where minor snags remain, a common solution is a retention: an agreed sum held back from the final payment until the outstanding items are fixed. Get any retention agreed in writing before signing.

The first-occupation licence and utilities

Before you complete, confirm that the licencia de primera ocupacion (first-occupation licence, also called licencia de ocupacion) has been granted by the town hall. Under Andalusia’s planning law, the Ley 7/2021 de impulso para la sostenibilidad del territorio (LISTA), lawful occupation of a new home requires this licence or the corresponding responsible declaration.³ It certifies that the building matches the approved project and is fit to be lived in. In practice it is also what lets you contract definitive water, electricity and gas supplies, and lenders often require it before releasing a mortgage. Do not accept assurances that it is coming: ask to see the licence, or the stamped application and the certificado final de obra (final works certificate) signed by the architect.

Building your snagging list: what to check

Work methodically, room by room, comparing what you see against the contract, the memoria de calidades (specification of qualities) and the plans. Test everything that moves, opens, switches on or drains. A thorough new-build snagging list on the Costa del Sol should cover at least the following.

• Walls, ceilings and paintwork: cracks, damp patches, uneven finishes, poor coverage.
• Floors and tiling: level surfaces, no hollow or loose tiles, matching grout, no chips or scratches.
• Doors and windows: open, close and lock smoothly; no draughts; sealed glazing; working blinds and shutters.
• Kitchen: worktops, units, taps and every appliance tested; no leaks under the sink.
• Bathrooms: taps, showers, toilets flushing, drainage, silicone sealing, water pressure.
• Electrics: every socket, switch, light fitting and the consumer unit; test with a plug-in tester.
• Plumbing and hot water: run taps, check hot water reaches quickly, look for leaks.
• Air conditioning and heating: confirm units are installed, powered and cooling or heating.
• Terraces, balconies and outdoor areas: drainage falls away from the building, railings secure, no ponding.
• Specification match: confirm the actual finishes, appliance brands and fittings are those you paid for, not cheaper substitutes.

Record each fault with a location, a description and a photo. Number the items and issue the list formally to the developer, keeping proof of delivery such as an email or burofax. Ask the developer to countersign an acta de entrega (handover record) that references your defect list.

Your legal safety net: the LOE warranties

Spain gives new-build buyers robust protection through the Ley 38/1999 de Ordenacion de la Edificacion (LOE). Article 17 sets three tiers of warranty running from the date the works were certified as complete, and they apply automatically regardless of what the sales contract says.¹

To back the ten-year tier, Article 19 of the LOE requires the developer of residential buildings to hold a decennial damage insurance policy (seguro decenal). Without it the property registrar will not register the declaration of new works, which in turn blocks the sale, so this insurance is effectively unavoidable for a legitimate developer.¹ The one-year finishing guarantee can be substituted by the developer retaining five per cent of the construction cost. Ask your lawyer to confirm the decennial policy is in place and to identify the insurer, because that is who ultimately answers for a serious structural claim.

Note that these warranties concern defects that appear over time. They do not replace snagging: visible faults you accept at handover without protest are far harder to pursue later, so the inspection and the ten-year cover work together, not as alternatives.

Advance payment guarantees

If you bought off-plan and paid deposits or stage payments during construction, those sums must be legally protected. The rules originate in the Ley 57/1968 on advance payments in housing construction, later carried into the LOE, which require the developer to guarantee the return of amounts paid on account, plus statutory interest, through a bank guarantee or insurance policy if the home is not delivered.² Before completion, confirm that your instalments were covered and paid into the required special account. If they were not, raise it with your lawyer immediately, because it affects your right to recover money should anything go wrong.

Documents to receive at handover

At or before completion, make sure you obtain and keep the following: the first-occupation licence, the certificado final de obra, the energy performance certificate (certificado de eficiencia energetica), the libro del edificio (building book with plans, maintenance instructions and warranties), the decennial insurance details, appliance manuals and guarantees, and the community of owners rules and constitution. These are the papers that let you claim under warranty, register utilities and understand your service charges. Related guides on completion costs, non-resident tax and community fees explain what happens next once the keys are yours.

Costs to budget at completion

Snagging aside, completion on a new-build carries taxes you should have provisioned for. A new home bought from a developer is subject to IVA (VAT) at ten per cent of the purchase price, reduced to four per cent for certain officially protected housing.⁴ On top of that, Andalusia charges stamp duty, the Impuesto sobre Actos Juridicos Documentados (AJD), at a general rate of 1.2 per cent on the deed.⁵ Notary and land registry fees are additional. Keeping the balance and these taxes ready lets you complete promptly once your snagging list is cleared, rather than losing your negotiating position through delay.

After completion: reporting defects

If a fault appears once you have moved in, report it in writing to the developer without delay, quoting the relevant LOE period and keeping evidence. Give the developer a reasonable chance to repair, but if they do not act, your lawyer can pursue the claim, ultimately against the decennial insurer for structural issues. Acting promptly and in writing preserves both your evidence and your statutory rights.