Commercial Premises In Javea

Types of Javea commercial premises

Just like in the UK, Spain has many diverse commercial premises for sale or rent, ranging from small locales suitable for hairdressing or a shop, to huge industrial buildings used as warehouses or factories. In Javea, the most sought-after commercial premises are established bars and restaurants, as well as empty locales which are then fitted out for their intended purpose.

Costs associated with buying commercial premises

The amount you pay for commercial premises in Javea will vary greatly depending on a number of factors. These include the size of the premises, the location, and if they are well-equipped.

A large percentage of businesses in Spain are leasehold, so when you buy you pay an agreed sum to the previous lessee for the “traspaso” or transfer of the business. This includes the fixtures and fittings and the goodwill; non-tangible assets such as a loyal clientele.

On top of the leasehold, you must pay the owner of the premises rent, but you have the option to sell the lease on.

A traspaso agreement in Spain is now legally called a “cesión” but many people are unaware of the change, and you will likely see businesses advertised as traspasos. Cesión laws offer more freedom for negotiation than a traspaso, but it is imperative you seek legal advice before paying anything for a lease. A lawyer will make sure you are not entering into a simple rental agreement concealed as a lease, because in that case you could not sell it on to anyone else. With a legal cesión, you can sell it on, but only after offering the landlord first refusal. A landlord is entitled to take a commission of around 15% on the sale.

When taking on a lease, the contract will state the length of the lease. Leases usually run between 5 and 20 years but ask your lawyer to negotiate the longest term possible, as when a lease is renewed the landlord has the right to increase the rent, which may make the business no longer viable.

Renting premises

Renting premises has the advantage that there is no large outlay for a lease, but you have less legal rights as a tenant than if you own the lease, and rental-only premises are more difficult to come by.

If you find decent premises to rent, make sure your lawyer checks the contract terms thoroughly, and the landlord cannot terminate the contract suddenly forcing you to relocate.

Freehold

In Spain, freehold commercial premises at a fair price are few and far between, and they do not usually make it to an estate agent’s portfolio but will be snapped up by someone known to the seller.  A freehold gives you much more freedom to modify the property as you wish, and also the possibility of renting it out should you tire of running the business yourself. Furthermore, after buying freehold premises you will not have to find a monthly rent, although there are likely to be community fees if your premises are part of a building.

The steps to buying a freehold commercial property are the same as when buying a residential property, and as with a residential purchase, you will have additional fees to pay including taxes, notary, and lawyer fees. You should expect to pay around 12% to 15% of the asking price in additional purchasing costs.

Commercial property considerations

When buying a commercial property, the biggest issue you will probably have to deal with is the location. Location is particularly important in the case of a bar or restaurant, although not such a deciding factor if you are planning on opening a shop offering a specialist service or products such as an unusual beauty treatment or fishing tackle. In the case of specialist businesses, your clients are likely to be repeat customers and will not object to travelling a few miles if you sell something not commonly found on every street corner. However, in bar/restaurant trade, and with standard types of shops, you need to be in an area with at least some regular passing foot traffic every day.

In resort towns like Javea, there are areas that during the summer months are overwhelmed with passers-by for several months of the year but see little foot traffic outside of the summer season. Likewise, some streets appear relatively quiet in the summer, but once schools reopen, they come alive for at least several hours in the afternoon and evening. Therefore, if you are new to Javea and looking for premises, you need to speak to an expert who knows the town extremely well, and sound knowledge of what may work and what is likely to fail in any given area.

Generally speaking, Javea is an excellent place for expats to start a high street or contractor type business, as more than half of Javea’s residents are from abroad, namely the UK, Germany, and France. Therefore, problems with language or cultural differences are minor, compared to if you were starting a business in a town with mainly Spanish nationals.