Mortgage lenders in Spain: how to check one

Who may lend, and under which label

Ley 10/2014, article 3.3, forbids anyone who is not authorised or registered as a credit institution from carrying out the activities legally reserved to credit institutions, or using their names. Article 15.1 says credit institutions “deberán quedar inscritas en el Registro de entidades de crédito del Banco de España” to carry out their activities.

Ley 5/2019 adds the rules for those that are not credit institutions:

• Its sections on intermediaries and lenders do not apply to credit institutions, financial credit establishments or hybrid payment entities (article 26.2).
• Real estate credit intermediaries “deberán estar inscritos en uno de los registros señalados en esta Ley” (article 27.1).
• Granting or managing loans on a professional basis “sólo podrá realizarse por aquellos prestamistas inmobiliarios debidamente inscritos en el registro correspondiente” (article 42.1). Credit institutions and financial credit establishments are not required to enter that register.

Which register

Article 28 splits the management of the intermediaries’ register between the Banco de España (operations in more than one community, branches and cross-border services) and the autonomous community (a single community). Article 42 follows the same logic for lenders: the community register for one territory (42.3) and registration with the Banco de España for more than one community (42.4). Article 31.4 asks the Banco de España to set up a single information point that brings the registers together.

The Banco de España’s page on competent authorities lists the regional bodies. On the page we read, six communities were listed, among them Castilla y León, Galicia, the Basque Country and the Valencian Community; we did not see the others, so do not assume that your community is or is not on it. The electronic office page says the register is published on the Banco de España’s website.

How to check a lender or intermediary

1. Ask for the firm’s full legal name and, in writing, whether it is a bank (credit institution), a real estate lender or an intermediary.
2. For a bank, search the register of credit institutions from the Banco de España’s registers page (link above).
3. For a lender or intermediary, search the Banco de España’s register, and the register of the region if the firm acts in one region only.
4. Compare the name and registration number with the name on the offer or the contract.
5. If a firm is on none of the registers it ought to be in, ask it to explain in writing and contact the Banco de España.

We could not open the Banco de España’s search tool: it runs as a web application and its form fields were not visible. The bank publishes downloadable files of the registers; we did not open them, since they may contain personal data. Payotte copies no register.

The terms of use of bde.es, as we read them: “libre uso privado de la información obtenida directamente de ella”; reproduction “debe ser realizada fielmente, sin manipular ni alterar los contenidos”; and the Banco de España “siempre debe ser citada como fuente”. Linked pages must open in their own window and not inside another site’s frame. We found nothing there on automated queries.

What the law adds for a home loan

Ley 5/2019 governs real estate credit contracts for consumers. Among the points we read: the borrower must appear before a notary of their choosing to receive in-person advice and the notary draws up a prior notarial record (acta notarial previa) showing that the documents were handed over within the required time (article 15); and the property must be valued by an independent, approved appraiser (article 13; see property valuers). The full set of rights, the documents you must receive and the steps are explained in how a mortgage works in Spain. To test a loan amount, use the mortgage calculator.

Which professional to consult

A lender or intermediary entered in the registers above can explain loan products; ask how it is paid. A property lawyer can read the offer and contract, and a notary gives the legal advice the law requires before signing a mortgage loan.