What does a €900,000 apartment in Sarrià really cost in 2026? Every fee, line by line

In short. A €900,000 resale apartment in Sarrià costs a foreign buyer about €105,000 to €110,000 on top of the price negotiated with the seller — 11.7–12.2% — of which €93,000 is transfer tax (ITP). Notary and registry together are under €2,000; the lawyer, the interpreter, the NIE and the bank make up most of the rest. Keeping the flat then costs around €6,000 a year before utilities: IBI, community fees, insurance, and two taxes non-residents rarely budget for.

Why a worked example, and why Sarrià

Our guide to the costs of buying a property in Barcelona explains each cost in general terms. Clients tell us it is useful and then ask the only question that matters: “so what will I pay?” This article answers it for one concrete purchase, to the euro where the number is fixed by law and to a sensible range where it is set by the market. If your budget is €700,000 or €1.5 million, the shape of the answer is the same and the tax line moves as described in our piece on ITP in Catalonia in 2026.

We chose €900,000 in Sarrià: in August 2026 the average asking price in Sarrià was €7,813 per square metre and across the Sarrià-Sant Gervasi district €7,167, so €900,000 buys roughly 115 to 125 square metres — a three-bedroom family apartment in a quiet, well-run building.

The assumptions

Resale apartment (so ITP, not VAT), bought by an individual rather than a company, paid in cash — the mortgage variant is a short section below. You are an EU citizen and a tax resident outside Spain, you do not speak Spanish, and the price is at or above the Cadastre’s reference value. For the annual taxes we assume a cadastral value of €300,000, roughly a third of the price, which is typical for a Barcelona apartment after the city’s 2017 cadastral revision; the real figure is on the seller’s last IBI receipt and you should ask for it before signing anything.

Part one: the cost of acquiring

Item	Amount	How it is set
Transfer tax (ITP, Catalonia)	€93,000	10% on the first €600,000, 11% on the next €300,000. Fixed by law.
Notary	≈ €1,200	Statutory scale: about €700 on €900,000, plus copies and VAT. Typically €1,100–1,300 all in.
Land Registry	≈ €500	Statutory scale. About €450–700 including VAT.
Lawyer (due diligence, contracts, notary, Form 600, registration)	€10,890	1% of the price plus 21% VAT is the common quote to foreign buyers. Depending on the firm, a fixed fee of €4,000–6,000 plus VAT can be negotiated.
Interpreter at the notary	≈ €400	Required if you do not understand Spanish. Typically €250–600 including a translation of the key terms. If your English is fluent, an English-speaking notary removes the need for one.
NIE via power of attorney	≈ €510	Fee €9.84; Spanish lawyer ≈ €300; notary, apostille and translation at home ≈ €200. In person: the fee and a morning.
Spanish bank account, first year	≈ €150	Non-resident opening and maintenance. €0–250 depending on the bank.
Payment at completion (OMF transfer)	≈ €150	Negotiate a flat fee. A bank cheque at the average 0.45% would cost €4,050 — see below.
Currency conversion	≈ €2,700	0.3% spread at a specialist provider. A bank spread of 1.5% would cost €13,500.
Total on top of the price negotiated with the seller	≈ €109,500	12.2% of the price

Three lines deserve comment. The tax is 85% of the total, and it is the one number in the table that cannot be negotiated, reduced or timed. You have at most 30 days to pay it. Everything else together is €16,500, and about a third of that is discretionary.

The lawyer’s fee is the largest of the discretionary lines. One percent plus VAT is what most firms quote to a foreign buyer, and at €900,000 it is worth asking for a fixed fee instead: a well-run conveyance at this price is a known quantity of work, and €5,000–6,000 plus VAT is a fair price for it. With a fixed fee the total falls to about €105,000, or 11.7%.

The two bank lines are where buyers lose money without noticing. Spanish banks still charge for a bank cheque as a percentage of its face value — 0.45% on average, which on €900,000 is €4,050 for a piece of paper. Ask instead for an OMF transfer, the same-day settlement through the Bank of Spain that notaries accept: banks price it anywhere from a flat fee to a percentage, so agree the cost in writing a week before completion, not on the day. And convert your currency through a specialist provider rather than a retail bank: on a purchase of this size the difference between a 0.3% and a 1.5% spread is over €10,000, which is more than the notary, registry, interpreter and NIE combined. For a buyer bringing money from outside the euro area this single decision matters more than any fee in the table.

What is not in the table — and why

The agency commission. In a standard Barcelona purchase through the listing agency, the seller pays it. You pay nothing. If you engage a buyer’s agent to search and negotiate on your side — a service we offer and will describe in a separate article — that fee is agreed separately and is not a transaction cost of the property.

Plusvalía municipal and the seller’s capital gains tax. Both are the seller’s. We cover the first in our guide to Plusvalía Municipal.

Reservation and deposit. The reservation (typically €3,000–6,000) and the arras deposit (10%, so €90,000 here) are not costs; they are the price, paid early. They matter for cash flow: €90,000 leaves your account within a fortnight of saying yes, two months before completion.

A mortgage. Non-residents are typically offered 60–70% of the price or of the official valuation (tasación), whichever is lower. Since 2019 the bank pays the stamp duty, notary and registry costs of the mortgage deed; you pay the valuation (€400–700) and any arrangement fee (0–1%), and you will be asked to take the bank’s home and life insurance (the latter is not compulsory, but it lowers the interest rate). The mortgage adds two to four weeks to the timeline, which is the more important cost.

Part two: the first year of ownership

Item	Per year	How it is set
IBI (municipal property tax)	≈ €1,980	Barcelona’s 0.66% on the cadastral value (assumed €300,000).
Waste charge	≈ €150	Municipal and metropolitan waste charges, billed with the water bill. €100–250.
Community fees	≈ €2,400	€200 a month is typical for a Sarrià building with a lift and a porter. €200–400.
Home insurance	≈ €450	Buildings and contents, with occupation cover. €350–700.
Non-resident income tax (IRNR) on imputed income	≈ €627	19% on 1.1% of the cadastral value, charged even if the flat is never rented.
Wealth tax	≈ €433	State rules for non-residents: €700,000 exempt, 0.2–0.3% on the rest.
Total, before utilities	≈ €6,000	About 0.7% of the price

Two of these lines surprise almost every foreign owner. The first is the imputed income tax: Spain taxes a non-resident on the notional rental value of a home they keep for their own use — 1.1% of the cadastral value, at 19% for EU residents — and the return is due the year after, on Form 210, whether or not anyone reminds you. The second is the wealth tax. Non-residents are taxed under the state rules with a €700,000 allowance, so a single €900,000 apartment produces a modest €433; but the law lets you opt into the Catalan rules instead, and on this purchase that would triple the bill, because Catalonia’s allowance is €500,000. Nobody should make that election by accident.

If you become a Spanish tax resident and this is your home, both lines change: there is no imputed income on a main residence, and the Catalan wealth tax exempts €300,000 of your home on top of the €500,000 allowance, leaving about €210 a year on these figures. Residents on the so-called “Beckham law” regime are a separate case and worth a conversation of their own.

When the money actually leaves

Reservation on day one. The 10% deposit within about two weeks. The balance, the notary and the lawyer at completion, roughly two months later. ITP within one month of the deed — in practice your lawyer files Form 600 within days. Insurance from the day you hold the keys. IBI the following spring, in Barcelona’s March–May window. The imputed income return by 31 December of the following year and wealth tax by 30 June. A buyer who moves €1,010,000 into a Spanish account before completion and leaves it there has covered every line in both tables with room to spare.

The same purchase at home

Buyers from countries with a low flat transfer tax often plan for 3–4% of acquisition costs, because that is what a similar purchase costs them at home. In Barcelona it is three times that, and the difference is almost entirely the tax. It does not change whether Barcelona is the right decision; it changes how much cash you need on the day, and it is the reason we send every client this table before they fall in love with a flat rather than after.

Frequently asked questions

How much should I budget on top of the price negotiated with the seller for a €900,000 resale apartment in Barcelona?

Between 11.7% and 12.2% — about €105,000 to €110,000 — of which €93,000 is transfer tax. The range depends mainly on whether your lawyer charges a fixed fee or 1%, and on how you convert and move the money.

Are notary and registry fees expensive in Spain?

No. Both follow statutory scales that flatten above €600,000. On a €900,000 purchase the notary is about €1,200 and the Land Registry about €500, VAT included.

Do I pay the estate agent’s commission as a buyer?

In a standard purchase through the listing agency, no — the seller pays. A buyer’s agent working on your side is a separate engagement with its own fee.

What does it cost to own the apartment each year if I don’t rent it out?

Around €6,000 before utilities on these assumptions: IBI, community fees, insurance, the waste charge, non-resident imputed income tax and wealth tax. Roughly 0.7% of the price.

Is it cheaper to pay with a bank cheque or a transfer at the notary?

Usually a transfer. Spanish banks price bank cheques as a percentage of the amount — 0.45% on average, over €4,000 on this purchase — while an OMF transfer can be negotiated as a flat fee. Agree it with your bank in writing before completion day.

Sources and update note

ITP per Decree-Law 5/2025 (Catalonia). Notary and registry fees per the statutory scales in Royal Decrees 1426/1989 and 1427/1989 with the reductions in force; the 10% notary discount includes Royal Decree-Law 8/2010. NIE fee per Order PJC/617/2025. IBI rate per Barcelona’s 2026 tax ordinance. Wealth tax per Law 19/1991 (state scale and €700,000 allowance for non-residents) and the Catalan 2026 scale. Imputed income per the Non-Resident Income Tax Law (1.1% of cadastral value where revised within ten years; Barcelona’s revision dates from 2017). Sarrià prices per idealista, August 2026. Bank-cheque commission average per HelpMyCash’s bank survey. Notary, lawyer, interpreter, insurance, community-fee and FX figures are market ranges from our own transactions, stated as such. Verified September 2026; confirm the figures for your own purchase with your lawyer.