{"id":10591,"date":"2018-02-27T12:19:55","date_gmt":"2018-02-27T12:19:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dpcon.es\/buying-property-as-a-whole-cuerpo-cierto\/"},"modified":"2018-02-27T12:19:55","modified_gmt":"2018-02-27T12:19:55","slug":"buying-property-as-a-whole-cuerpo-cierto","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dpcon.es\/en\/buying-property-as-a-whole-cuerpo-cierto\/","title":{"rendered":"What does buying a property ‘as a whole’ (a cuerpo cierto) mean?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.21.4″ use_background_color_gradient=”on” background_color_gradient_start=”#f7f7f7″ background_color_gradient_end=”#f9f9f9″ background_color_gradient_direction=”262deg” custom_padding=”40px|0px|7px|0px|false|false”][et_pb_row custom_padding=”4px|0px|0px|0px|false|false” custom_margin=”||0px” _builder_version=”3.21.4″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.21.4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.21.4″ text_font=”||||||||” header_font=”Playfair Display|700|||||||” header_font_size=”40px” header_line_height=”1.1em”]

What does buying a property ‘as a whole’ (a cuerpo cierto) mean?<\/h1>[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.21.4″ _dynamic_attributes=”content” custom_margin=”0px||” custom_padding=”0px||”]@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9kYXRlIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJkYXRlX2Zvcm1hdCI6ImRlZmF1bHQiLCJjdXN0b21fZGF0ZV9mb3JtYXQiOiIifX0=@[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.21.4″ custom_padding=”2px|0px|15px|0px|false|false”][et_pb_row custom_padding=”12px|0px|18px|0px|false|false” _builder_version=”3.21.4″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.21.4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.21.4″ text_font=”||||||||” text_orientation=”center” global_module=”5075″ saved_tabs=”all”]\"\"<\/span>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row custom_padding=”20px|0px|27px|0px|false|false” _builder_version=”3.21.4″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.21.4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.21.4″ text_font=”Lato||||||||” text_text_color=”#3d3d3d” text_font_size=”16px” text_orientation=”justified”]

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A “cuerpo cierto” clause in the purchase deeds does not release sellers from their obligation to answer for construction defects. <\/h3>\n

It is a very common phrase in public deeds of sale where flats are sold in bulk by banks or by property companies linked to or close to them.<\/p>\n

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“Cuerpo cierto<\/em>” (sale of the property as a whole, as it stands) is a common boilerplate formula, inserted automatically, which does not go into whether the buyers have been able to check properly the condition of the properties and communal areas being sold, or how far that knowledge extends.<\/span><\/h4>\n
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For example, even if the buyers visited the property before signing the deeds, they could not have known that the lifts were not legally certified and were also outdated under current regulations, or that there was significant damp inside the wardrobes. <\/p>\n

This generic expression is not<\/strong> magic, nor\u00a0<\/span>can it cover any conduct by the seller<\/strong>; the seller’s obligation is only fulfilled if the home is handed over in a condition fit for its purpose, so\u00a0<\/span>any defect or poor finish in the home\u00a0<\/span>that was not expressly provided for in the deeds or contract<\/u>\u00a0<\/span>must be regarded as a breach of contract.<\/strong><\/p>\n

And a home, given the social purpose it serves and the reason it is bought (to serve as a dwelling, where the most basic and intimate aspects of human life together take place), must be handed over properly finished, without defects that could diminish its value,\u00a0<\/span>unless those defects were expressly provided for in the contract\/deeds<\/u> and the purchase price was set with them in mind.<\/p>\n

The courts say that purchasers must receive a product as good as the money they hand over in return.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>Buyers are not obliged to accept defective goods, and just as they cannot perform their side of the bargain by handing over money that is defective, damaged or worth less than the euros set as the price,\u00a0<\/span>the seller must hand over the house free of defects<\/strong>.<\/p>\n