When in the market to buy a property or business in Tenerife, access to the most up-to-date and comprehensive property or business listings saves a lot of time - and can potentially save you money too!

While most Tenerife Estate Agents have their own websites listing property or businesses for sale on the island, it is very time-consuming to hop from one estate agent website to another looking for the best price on a particular house or business. In most cases, browsers wish to compare several websites to find the most suitable home or commercial investment.

To make life easier for you, The Tenerife Property and Business Guide gathers up-to-date listings from the best of Tenerife's commercial or estate agents, presenting them all in one place for easy browsing. The resulting database of businesses and properties for sale in Tenerife is the most comprehensive available.

Property for Sale in Tenerife

As in the UK or elsewhere there are different kinds of property available in Tenerife which would be of interest under different circumstances

A young family looking to move to Tenerife may prefer a terraced house or large apartment near a school. Properties for sale in Adeje would be an ideal starting point in their search as the Adeje municipality is known for its many family-oriented social initiatives and would be a good location for a family.

Those who want to buy an apartment or townhouse for letting out to holiday makers would want to look at investing in property in the Los Cristianos and Las Americas areas, the island's main tourist destinations.

An active retired couple may be interested in buying an old country house to restore. While there are many rustic properties available, it is advisable to seek the professional expertise of an estate agent when looking to purchase a Canarian house or finca in Tenerife as local zoning laws affect their development and usage.

It's not only the property type that would affect the decision to buy a property in Tenerife but the location. Considering that it is such a small island, each town and village has its own character. Some areas, like the new coastal development at Palm Mar have a clean, modern feel, while the fishing villages of Las Galettas and Los Abrigos offer a more traditional vibe.

We often advise that unless you already know where in Tenerife you wish to purchase a house or apartment, you would be best to rent for six months or so to get the feel for the area you choose. Much easier to simply pack up and move to a new long-term rental apartment than to have to resell should you find the area not to your liking. Of course, once you are sure about the location, you will be much more decisive when you find a suitable Tenerife property.

Businesses for Sale in Tenerife

Many who make the move to Tenerife do so with the intention of buying a business. As it is such a popular tourist destination many Tenerife businesses for sale relate in some way to the tourism industry whether they be accommodation or catering related. However not everyone needs to buy a bar or restaurant in Tenerife to make money as there are many other opportunities available like car rentals, property management and many other services that cater to the expatriate community as well as the local population.

The links on the left hand navigation bar will take you to various key pages of the site including Tenerife property for sale and rent. Of course, you may be quite happy just browsing through our more than 10,000 properties for sale in Tenerife to see what is available. Each search result can be further refined using the various filters for property type, general area, location and price.

Tenerife Estate Agents:

Buying Tenerife property - or property anywhere for that matter - can be a nerve-wracking experience.  Those who have spent time in Tenerife before returning to their homes in the UK or Eire often spend long months dreaming about buying a home in sunny Tenerife before reaching the decision to actually make the move.

Decison made, hopeful buyers then arrange a trip to Tenerife and often walk in off the street to the first estate agent office that they find or the one that happens to be closest to their holiday apartment. While some property buyers will be looking to move permanently others are simply wanting to buy a holiday home that they can use for themselves and also let out for a little extra income.

The principal reason people give for choosing to buy property in Tenerife is the island’s wonderful year-round climate. Whilst, initially, the property is bought for holiday use, many people also harbour a dream that they may one day retire here.

Having decided to look into the purchase of a property in Tenerife, usually by studying properties for sale in various Tenerife Estate Agents’ windows, a decision ultimately has to be made about what  kind of property to buy (usually dictated by price), and where to buy (often dictated by where people have themselves holidayed over the years).  Many first time buyers therefore end up with an apartment near to where they stayed on holiday simply because that’s where the Estate Agent they liked best had their office! Later, these same people often wish they had looked at other locations before 'rushing in'.

However, over recent years, ever-increasing numbers of people are buying their properties having first identified them via the internet, following up their initial contact with agents by visiting Tenerife to have a look at a number of ‘suitable’ properties before making a decision. This process has become more and more refined over the last 2/3 years with more, and better, sites appearing with built-in Enquiry Forms, Virtual Tours of properties and so on being available on a good site.

• Buying your Tenerife Property

Once viewings are completed and a decision has been made, you then have to get down to the ‘nitty gritty’ of Spanish formalities and the paperwork!

Buying property in Tenerife is a very different proposition to buying a property in the United Kingdom and Eire (apologies to readers from other countries!). Not only are you buying a property in a foreign country, but all the paperwork is in a foreign language too (surprise, surprise!). Added to this is the fact that things are  carried out in a quite different way. As an example, when you buy an apartment in Tenerife, you don’t just buy the apartment ,but also a share of the pathways, swimming pools, lifts and all the other facilities which are part of the complex in which the apartment is situated. The costs and expenses of all these individual items is calculated on a percentage basis (depending on the total square metres of your apartment vis a vis the total square metres of the entire complex) and apportioned accordingly.

• Searching for your ideal property or business in Tenerife

Using The Tenerife Property Guide site to search for your ideal property or business in Tenerife is simple and you can use any one of a number of methods we have made available – you can select an Estate Agent and browse through each of their properties individually, or by refining them by Price Range, Area, Location, Type of Property, or  the number of Bedrooms; or you can select a Price Range, or a specific location, or area. In all cases, the Search Results can be further refined by using the filters on the left hand side of the Search results screen. You can even select the way you view your Search Results by using the 'Show As' option.

The FEES and TAXES payable on buying property in Tenerife

 When you buy a new (ie direct from a developer) property  in Tenerife, IGIC (VAT) of 5% is payable on the value declared on the Escritura (Title Deeds) and is collected by the developer on signing at Notary. In addition, Property Transfer Tax (Impuesto Sobre Transmisiones Patrimoniales) of 0.5% is payable within 30 days of signing (attended to by your Estate Agent or Solicitor). 

More information on Tenerife property fees and taxes here .