Our own data · as at 14.07.2026Spanish banks compared — which lender finances property for non-residents?
We approach 15 to 20 lenders on every case. So we know how many actually write a structure — not how many call it conceivable.
The short answer. Of 15 to 20 lenders regularly approached in Spain, one pays the stage payments before the building is signed off. Two lend against an already paid-off, unencumbered property for non-residents — as a rule up to 50 % of the tasación. Handover including the Licencia de Primera Ocupación normally takes three to six months, and in some municipalities up to two years. Data from our own brokerage practice, as at 14.07.2026.
The findings
Finding 1How many Spanish banks pay the stage payments before handover?
2 of 15–20
Exactly two institutions pay the developer instalments during construction — once the buyer's equity is in, each instalment in full, straight to the developer. Every other lender approached pays only at handover.
Finding 2How many banks lend against an already paid-off property for non-residents?
1 of 15–20
One institution lends against unencumbered existing property — as a rule up to 50 % of the tasación, with the capital documented into the next property in Spain.
Finding 3How long does handover including the Licencia de Primera Ocupación take?
3–6 months, in individual cases up to 2 years
Three to six months after technical completion is normal. In some municipalities the procedure drags on for up to two years. No standard bank pays out during that time — and the buyer carries the instalments from their own liquidity.
Finding 4How many buyers lose the new-build because nobody arranges the finance?
20–30 a year — rising
That is how many people approach us each year after the purchase has already collapsed — not because of creditworthiness, but because nobody could find them a bank that pays the stage payments. The trend is rising. These are only the ones who still found us; how many there are in total, nobody knows. The real figure is certainly higher.
Model calculations without guarantee. Not binding offers. Terms vary depending on credit profile, property and bank. No tax or legal advice.
Method — so the numbers can be checked
The basis is the brokerage practice of Perini Finance & Property. For every Spanish financing case, 15 to 20 institutions are approached — major Spanish banks, regional cajas, non-resident specialists and international lenders. What is counted is how many actually write the structure, not how many call it conceivable. Period: ongoing brokerage practice, as at 14 July 2026. Lender names are not published. The fourth finding counts people, not banks: it covers only enquiries that reached us after the purchase had already collapsed. Those who never found us appear in no statistic — not even ours. The figure is therefore a documented lower bound, not an estimate of the whole market.
What this is not. It is not a representative study of the whole Spanish banking market, but an evaluation of our own enquiries. Lenders we do not approach do not appear in it. We publish no names — access to these houses is what our clients pay us for.
Next update: Q4 2026. Please cite as: "Perini Market Check, Perini Finance & Property, as at 14.07.2026". Each finding can be linked individually (anchors: #bauraten · #beleihung-bestand · #bauabnahme-dauer · #gescheiterte-kaeufe).
What this means for you
When your bank says no, that is rarely a statement about your case. It is a statement about which camp the lender you happened to ask belongs to. Nineteen noes and one yes still add up to a yes — you only have to know which house to ask.
ConstructionEquity in first, then the bank pays each instalment in full — straight to the developer.
Existing propertyUp to 50 % of the tasación, free of charges, funds documented into the next property in Spain.
GermanyUp to 80 % of the lending value — as equity or purchase price in Spain.
Your case is not in this data?
Then it is probably interesting. Send us the key facts — we will tell you whether it holds before you file an application anywhere.
Discuss your caseFrequently askedQuestions about the market check
How many Spanish banks pay the stage payments before handover?
According to the survey by Perini Finance & Property (as at July 2026), exactly two of the 15 to 20 lenders regularly approached pays the developer instalments during construction. All the others pay only at handover.
How many Spanish banks lend against an already paid-off property for non-residents?
Two of 15 to 20 lenders approached (Perini Market Check, July 2026). As a rule up to 50 per cent of the tasación, the property free of charges, with the use of funds in Spain to be evidenced — the money may not leave the country.
How long does handover including the Licencia de Primera Ocupación take in Spain?
Three to six months after technical completion is normal. In some municipalities the procedure drags on for up to two years (Perini Market Check, July 2026). No standard bank pays out during that time, and the buyer carries the instalments from their own liquidity.
How many buyers lose a Spanish new-build because nobody arranges the finance?
20 to 30 people approach Perini Finance & Property each year after the purchase has already collapsed — not because of creditworthiness, but because nobody could find them a bank that pays the developer instalments during construction. The trend is rising (Perini Market Check, July 2026). Only enquiries that reached us are counted; the real figure is higher.
Content by Siegfried Perini — local brand representative since 2019, active in real estate since 1992, entered in the German intermediary register (§ 11a GewO) as a person directly involved in brokerage and advice. Point of contact for German-speaking buyers in Spain and Portugal. Brokerage by Olga Nikushkina, mortgage credit intermediary under §34i German Trade Regulation (GewO), notified for Spain via the German BAFA; in Portugal through a locally licensed intermediary.
Last updated: July 25, 2026