New Developments in Manilva

Manilva sits west of Estepona on the Costa del Sol, close to the Gibraltar border and the marina at Puerto de la Duquesa. New developments here are sold off-plan rather than as completed stock, so a buyer reserves a home months or years before it is built. La Duquesa draws much of the supply, with beachfront and beachside schemes alongside others closer to shops and schools. Inland plots carry suburban villas and townhouses, some backing onto forest. Apartments, villas and townhouses all appear, and bedroom counts run from one to four.

When you reserve off-plan, you pay in stages tied to construction milestones rather than handing over the full amount at once. Spanish law requires the developer to secure each stage payment with a bank guarantee or insurance policy, so if the project fails the money is returned. Check that the guarantee is in place before you transfer funds. Your lawyer will confirm it by requesting a copy of the policy and verifying it with the issuing bank.

A new build bought from a developer is subject to VAT and stamp duty, not the transfer tax that applies to a resale. VAT is charged on the purchase price and stamp duty falls on the deed itself. The rates depend on the region and should be confirmed with your lawyer, because Andalucía and Valencia differ and Andalucía's own rates have changed in recent years. A resale attracts transfer tax instead, which is also regional, so the tax bill on a new home is calculated differently from the one on a resale at the same price.

Before the developer can hand over keys, the town hall must sign the building off as fit to live in. This inspection covers structure, services and compliance with the planning consent. No one else can issue that sign-off, and waiting for it is the most common reason a completion date moves. Ask when the developer expects to apply for it and what stage the building must reach before the application goes in. The sign-off comes after construction finishes, so a scheme delivered on time has usually secured it before the contractual handover date.

Most buyers arrange a final inspection a few days before completion, walking the property with a surveyor to list any unfinished work or defects. The list goes to the developer, who must remedy the faults. Spanish law holds the builder liable for one year on finishes such as paintwork and tiling, three years on elements that affect living in the home such as plumbing and insulation, and ten years on structural defects. Those periods start from handover, and the liability is statutory rather than dependent on a warranty policy.

Assessing a developer means checking the company behind the scheme, not just the marketing name on the brochure. Ask your lawyer to pull the land registry record for the plot, which will name the registered owner. Look up that company at the Mercantile Registry to see when it was formed, who the directors are, and whether it has filed accounts. A company with a track record of delivered projects and years of filed returns carries less risk than one created solely for this scheme. The bank guarantee protects your deposits if the project fails, but a developer with completed schemes behind them is less likely to leave you relying on it.

Off-plan and resale suit different buyers. A resale is available now, you see the finished home before you pay, and you complete within weeks of reserving. Off-plan gives you the chance to choose finishes and layouts while the building is still on paper, but you wait months or years for delivery and you pay for something you cannot yet see. The trade-off is access to new stock in locations where resales are scarce. In Manilva and La Duquesa, much of the beachfront and beachside supply is off-plan, because older buildings in those positions rarely come to market.