An English-speaking estate agency on the Costa del Sol
My name is Hannah De Oliveira. I am an estate agent in Málaga, registration number API 525 , and the VivaStay team works in English, Spanish and French. VivaStay does two jobs under the same roof: I sell properties, and I manage rentals. It is this second half that changes what I can tell you before you sign.
“Registered estate agent”: what it means in Spain
It is the question nobody thinks to ask, and the one that costs the most. In Spain, since Royal Decree-Law 4/2000, the estate agency profession has been completely deregulated. Anyone can practise without a qualification, without an exam and without belonging to any professional body. That is perfectly legal, but it means that the words “estate agent” or “property finder” guarantee nothing on their own.
The title of Agente de la Propiedad Inmobiliaria (API) is something else: it means registration with an official professional association. In Málaga, that is COAPI Málaga, a public-law corporation. My number is 525.
In practice, this changes three things for you:
- I am identifiable. The list of members is public. A name, a number, a registration you can check, not just a website and a nice sign.
- I am bound by a code of conduct overseen by the association, not just by my own good intentions.
- You have a recourse other than me. The association runs a consumer service. If you ever feel I have not done my job properly, there is someone above me you can turn to.
This is not an argument against unregistered agencies: there are excellent ones on this coast. It is simply information you deserve to have before entrusting a project worth several hundred thousand euros to someone you do not know, in another country.
Why it matters that I also manage rentals
An agent who only sells will quote you a yield. They take it from an average, a developer’s brochure or a spreadsheet. I run rental properties on this coast: cleaning, check-ins, disputes, quiet seasons, August water bills. I know what a flat really earns, and above all what it really costs.
So when I give you a figure, I tell you where it comes from :
- either it is a calculation based on published averages (Idealista, official registers), and I tell you so, with the method;
- or it is what a comparable property I manage has actually earned , and I show you over which period.
This is not modesty. It is the only honest way to talk about returns with someone about to commit several hundred thousand euros from abroad.
What I check before you sign anything
The Costa del Sol is not a single market. It is a string of towns, each with its own prices, its own neighbourhoods and, the point almost nobody explains to British and Nordic buyers, its own rule on holiday lets.
| Town | New licence | Who decides |
|---|---|---|
| Málaga city | Frozen | The town hall |
| Torremolinos | Still possible | The Junta de Andalucía (RTA register) |
| Benalmádena | Possible… unless vetoed | The community of owners |
| Mijas | Possible | The Andalusian decree |
| Estepona | Possible | The Andalusian decree |
The case that sums it all up. In Benalmádena, a company bought a flat in October 2024 with its administrative holiday let registration in hand. The Land Registry refused it. The reason: the community statutes had banned tourist use since 2020, and that ban was recorded at the registry. The refusal was upheld (BOE no. 37 of 11 February 2026). An administrative authorisation does not override a ban recorded at the registry. It is the kind of thing you check before making an offer, not after.
In practice, on every property you consider, I look at:
- The nota simple : who really owns it, what charges, mortgages and easements apply.
- The community statutes : and whether they ban holiday letting. It is the trap of the moment.
- Community debts : they follow the property, not the seller.
- The town’s VUT rule : today’s, not the one from two years ago.
- The real cost of the purchase : in Andalusia, ITP (transfer tax) is 7% on a resale property; on a new build, it is 10% VAT + 1.2% AJD (stamp duty). On top of that come notary, registry and gestoría fees.
If you want to see what these checks look like in detail, we have put together the mistakes to avoid when buying in Spain : eight specific points, each with the concrete step that avoids it.
How we work together
- A thirty-minute call, before any viewings. Your budget, your goal (a home, a rental or both) and your tax situation. If your project is not feasible here, I will tell you then and there. It is the best service I can offer you.
- A shortlist, with the reasons for what I turned down. I send you properties, and I also tell you what I ruled out and why. A property with no chance of a licence, a community facing major works, a price per m² out of line with the neighbourhood.
- Viewings, with an agent who speaks your language. The VivaStay agent who speaks your language goes with you on site. You do not view alone with the seller’s agent.
- Negotiation. I know prices per m² neighbourhood by neighbourhood, and how long a property has been on the market.
- Securing the purchase. NIE, bank account, deposit contract, notary, ITP, transferring the utility contracts. Nothing goes ahead until you understand what you are signing.
- And afterwards. This is the part missing almost everywhere else: holiday let licence, letting, management, cleaning, non-resident taxation. You do not have to find another provider.
What I will not tell you
Better to put it in writing, it will save you time.
- I will not tell you it is always the right time. In some towns and for some profiles, it is not.
- I will not sell you a holiday let project in Málaga city. New licences are frozen there. You would find out after buying, and it would be my fault.
- I do not inflate a yield by leaving out running costs, community fees, IBI, the empty month of January and platform commissions.
- I am neither a lawyer nor a tax adviser. I work with professionals whose job that is, and I tell you when a question falls to them.
Where I work
Málaga city, Torremolinos, Benalmádena, Fuengirola, Mijas, La Cala, Marbella and Estepona: the western Costa del Sol, plus the nearby inland towns (Cártama, Coín, Alhaurín) when the project suits.
I publish a detailed guide for each town: price per m² by neighbourhood, holiday let rules, calculated yield. Málaga, Torremolinos, Benalmádena, Mijas and Estepona are online.
The starting point, if you first want to understand the market: our investment page.
What my clients say
5.0 out of 5, from 21 Google reviews. These are public reviews, under real names, that you can read for yourself. I reproduce them in full on the site: never reworded, never cut off mid-sentence.
Frequently asked questions
Can a British buyer purchase property in Spain?
Yes. Nationality is no bar: UK and other non-EU buyers purchase on the same terms as Spanish nationals, apart from exceptional cases in areas of defence interest. Buyers from Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Norway buy under the same conditions. You need an NIE (foreigner identification number) and a Spanish bank account for the transaction.
What is the NIE, and how do I get one?
The Número de Identidad de Extranjero is your tax identification number in Spain. You need it to buy, pay taxes, open an account and set up water and electricity contracts. It is issued by an authorised police station in Spain or by a Spanish consulate in your country of residence. I help you with the application.
What are the buying costs in Spain, on top of the price?
In Andalusia, for a resale property : ITP at 7% of the price (or of the reference cadastral value if higher). For a new build : VAT at 10% plus AJD at 1.2%. On top of that come notary fees, Land Registry registration and usually a gestoría. Reduced rates exist for certain profiles (under 35, large families, disability) subject to conditions on the property’s value: I check whether you qualify.
Why use an English-speaking agency rather than a Spanish-only one?
Not for translation, but for the points where Spanish law does not work like UK or Nordic law. The deposit contract ( arras) is not a simple reservation, and it can bind you from day one, unlike in England and Wales where nothing is binding before exchange. Community debts follow the property. The seller does not have the same disclosure obligations. And the holiday let rules change from one town to the next. It is these differences that cost money, not the vocabulary.
Are you an estate agent or a property finder?
An estate agent registered with COAPI Málaga under number API 525, with my own sale instructions and my own rental portfolio. In Spain the profession has been deregulated since 2000: many people practise without registering, which is legal. Registration adds a code of conduct and a consumer complaints service. I can also work purely as a buyer’s agent for someone with a specific project, but that is not my only activity: I manage properties on the coast all year round.
Can I buy to let as a holiday rental?
It depends entirely on the town and the building, and the answer has changed several times since 2024. In Málaga city, new licences are frozen. In Torremolinos, it is still possible. In Benalmádena, the town hall does not block it, but the community of owners can ban it, and a ban recorded at the Land Registry binds you. It is the first thing I check on every property.
Do you look after the property after the purchase?
Yes, it is half of my work: holiday let licence applications, short or long-term letting, guest management, cleaning, maintenance, administrative and tax follow-up for non-resident owners, home staging and project management for works.
Let’s talk about your project
The first call costs nothing and commits you to nothing. Thirty minutes is enough to know whether your project stands up on this coast, and on what terms.
Phone: +34 951 550 733
In writing: contact form
Sources
- Status of estate agents in Spain: Royal Decree-Law 4/2000 of 23 June 2000 (deregulation), Royal Decree 1294/2007 (general statutes of the COAPI); COAPI Málaga, public-law corporation, code of conduct and consumer service (coapimalaga.com), consulted on 9 September 2026.
- Purchase taxes in Andalusia (ITP 7%, AJD 1.2%, reduced rates): Guía Fiscal and Rankia, consulted on 9 September 2026.
- Refusal to register tourist use in Benalmádena: decision of the Dirección General de Seguridad Jurídica y Fe Pública of 17 October 2025, published in BOE no. 37 of 11 February 2026 (BOE-A-2026-3182).
- Holiday let rules by town: see the details and sources in each of our town guides.
VivaStay Costa del Sol. Hannah De Oliveira, estate agent API 525, Málaga. The tax and regulatory information on this page is up to date as of 9 September 2026 and may change. It does not replace advice from a lawyer or tax adviser.
