Know the commitment behind the purchase contract

A private purchase contract should turn the agreed property transaction into obligations you understand. The important questions are who must do what, by when, for which payment and with what consequence if something goes wrong. Its title, length or familiar appearance does not answer those questions on its own.

Have the actual document reviewed before signing or paying under it. This guide helps you organise that review and identify decisions to discuss with your independent lawyer. It is not a reusable contract or advice that a particular clause will produce the outcome you want.

Recognise the significance of a private agreement

The Spanish notarial profession's property guidance explains that a private document can create binding obligations. Waiting for a later public deed does not mean that everything signed beforehand is merely an expression of interest.

The same source advises buyers to understand documents before signing them. Ask for an explanation of the legal effect as well as a translation of the words, particularly where the format differs from transactions you have completed in another country.

A short form or an earlier reservation can already matter. Give your lawyer the whole history, including signed documents, messages, money paid and promises made. Reviewing only the newest draft can leave an earlier obligation unexplained.

Identify every party and the authority to sign

Check the names and identification details of the buyers and sellers. Ask your lawyer to establish ownership and any authority needed for someone signing on another person's behalf. A familiar surname or an agent's introduction is not sufficient evidence.

If a company, inheritance, joint ownership or representation is involved, ask what additional documents are required. Avoid assuming one person can sign for everyone simply because they are handling the negotiations.

The power-of-attorney guide explains the need to match the authority to the task. Keep the approved evidence with the contract file and confirm whether anything must be refreshed before the notarial appointment.

Define the property and included rights accurately

The agreement needs to describe the home being purchased and the relevant identifiers. Ask how parking, storage, terraces, gardens and other important rights are included. Compare the drafting with the documents and physical property.

Where descriptions or areas differ, investigate rather than choosing whichever version is more convenient. The Land Registry and Cadastre guide explains why those records have different purposes and why neither alone replaces the whole enquiry.

Use an inventory for important moveable items and equipment where appropriate. Photographs in a listing may show things that will not remain. Ask how condition, removal and any agreed replacements will be recorded.

Reconcile the price and each payment

Create a simple schedule of the agreed price, amounts already paid, future instalments and the completion balance. Make clear which payments are credited against the price and which are separate fees or expenses.

For illustration, if the price is €300,000 and €12,000 has already been credited to it, the remaining price is €288,000 before further credited payments. That arithmetic does not include acquisition costs or determine how completion money is distributed.

Ask who receives each amount, on what authority and with what evidence of receipt. Use the secure-payments guide for verification habits. A correctly drafted schedule does not, by itself, authenticate a bank account.

Understand the deposit arrangement without relying on the label

Discuss whether the payments are part payments, a particular arras arrangement or another contractual mechanism. Ask how the actual wording deals with withdrawal, breach and the available remedies. Different arrangements should not be collapsed into one simple rule.

Article 1454 of the Civil Code is relevant to arras discussions, but its application to a particular agreement needs legal analysis. Do not assume every sum called a deposit automatically provides the same right to leave or recover money.

Read the reservation-and-arras guide and ask your lawyer to explain the consequences in ordinary language. You should understand the risk before deciding whether the proposed payment is acceptable.

Turn genuine dependencies into reviewed conditions

If you need borrowing, an approval, a particular document or resolution of a technical issue, explain that dependency explicitly. Ask whether the seller will agree an appropriate condition and how it must be drafted.

Discuss the trigger, evidence, deadline, notice process and treatment of money. A condition that sounds reassuring may still fail to address the event you are worried about. Avoid relying on a general phrase without understanding how it operates.

The finance-conditions guide distinguishes a lender's assessment from protection under the purchase agreement. A mortgage difficulty should not be assumed to undo a contract automatically.

Make the findings of due diligence part of the decision

Ask for a record of material legal and technical issues before you sign. Identify which have been resolved, which require further evidence and which risk you are being asked to accept. A report is useful only if its important conclusions influence the commitment.

If the seller promises to provide a missing document or complete work, discuss how that obligation will be recorded and verified. Establish what happens if it is not fulfilled in time rather than assuming a verbal assurance will be enough.

Read legal checks and surveys and inspections together. Contract wording does not physically repair a defect or establish a permission that has not been obtained.

Specify the handover you expect

Discuss the agreed occupation position, keys, included contents and the condition in which the home is to be delivered. If vacant possession is required, make that need clear and ask how it will be checked.

A property with tenants, other occupants or a proposed delayed handover needs specific advice. Do not assume that the same process applies as for an empty home, or that the keys will necessarily be available immediately under every arrangement.

Arrange an appropriate final inspection and record what it is intended to confirm. The completion-day guide helps connect those checks with the deed, payments and practical arrival plan.

Agree dates that can be met

Check the timetable against identification, finance, document formalities, investigations and the availability of the parties. An attractive completion date is not workable merely because it has been typed into the contract.

Ask how notices, extensions and changes must be documented. If a delay develops, tell your lawyer before the deadline and obtain advice on the available options. An informal conversation should not be assumed to amend the signed terms.

Where different languages or versions are used, clarify which text governs and how changes are controlled. Keep a complete final copy with schedules and attachments so there is no uncertainty about which document was approved.

Review the full allocation of expenses

Ask which taxes, fees, existing charges, cancellation costs and adjustments each party is expected to handle. Purchase expenses and mortgage expenses have different issues; a broad statement that everything is included may conceal exclusions.

Use the buying-cost guide for the categories and obtain advice about the transaction's actual treatment. Do not rely on a generic percentage or old template for a current tax conclusion.

Before signature, ask for the unresolved questions to be listed plainly. A useful contract review leaves you knowing the commitment, the conditions, the money at risk and the next steps—not simply that someone has checked a document on your behalf.