What is an arras contract?
The contrato de arras is the private deposit agreement that takes a property off the market while you arrange the purchase. The buyer pays a deposit — usually around 10% of the price — and both sides commit to completing before a notary by an agreed date. It comes before the public deed (escritura) and is where the real commitment is made.
The three types — and the one that matters
- Arras penitenciales — the common one. Either party can withdraw: the buyer forfeits the deposit, the seller returns double (Civil Code, Art. 1454).
- Arras confirmatorias — confirm the sale; there is no clean right to walk away, and a breach can be enforced or claimed in damages.
- Arras penales — a penalty for breach, but the other party can still demand completion.
Most property deposits are penitenciales — which sounds flexible, but it isn’t free: changing your mind costs you the deposit.
Why you must check the property before you sign
The arras is the point of no return. Sign it before you’ve verified the property and you’re committed — even if the nota simple later shows an undisclosed mortgage, even if the cadastre doesn’t match the listing, even if the taxes blow your budget. The leverage you have before the deposit — to renegotiate or walk — is gone the moment you transfer it.
So the few days between finding the flat and signing the arras are when due diligence has to happen: who really owns it, what charges sit on the title, whether it’s legal, and what it will truly cost.
Check it before the arras — in minutes.
Paste the Idealista or Fotocasa listing and Veo verifies it against the cadastre, the land-registry nota simple, rent-control rules and the real taxes — an honest verdict before you commit a euro.
Run a Trust Check →What is an arras contract?+
Arras (contrato de arras) is the private deposit agreement that takes a Spanish property off the market while you arrange the purchase. The buyer pays a deposit — typically around 10% of the price — and both sides commit to completing before a notary by an agreed date.
What are arras penitenciales?+
The most common type. Under Article 1454 of the Spanish Civil Code, either party may withdraw — but the buyer who pulls out forfeits the deposit, and the seller who pulls out must return double. It is, in effect, the price of changing your mind.
Can I get my deposit back if I back out of an arras contract?+
With arras penitenciales, generally no — withdrawing means losing the deposit, by design. That is precisely why every check (ownership, charges, legality, taxes) must happen before you sign, not after.
Do I need a lawyer before signing the arras?+
It's strongly advisable. A buyer's lawyer (and an instant Veo Trust Check) verifies the property before you commit money — because after the arras, your leverage is gone.
Related: how to get an NIE · the pre-purchase checklist · buying-cost calculator