Andalusia's new agent registry: what it means for buyers.

For decades, anyone in Andalusia could call themselves an estate agent. No licence, no training, no insurance, no register. In a market where thousands of agencies chase foreign buyers, that free-for-all explains a lot of the industry's reputation. It is now ending.

What the law does

Andalusia's housing law (Ley 5/2025), in force since 24 January 2026, creates a mandatory public Register of Residential Real Estate Agents. Registration will require a professional qualification or accredited training, professional indemnity insurance and a guarantee covering client money, no relevant criminal record, and a declaration of responsibility, with transparency obligations on top. The exact amounts and procedure are left to implementing regulations.

One honest caveat: the regional government has up to two years to make the register fully operational, so enforcement is phasing in rather than instant. The direction, though, is set, and serious operators are aligning with it now.

Why this is good news for you

Three practical improvements. Accountability: a registered agent has something to lose, and once it opens, a public register will give you somewhere to check. Insurance: professional indemnity means a remedy exists if an agent's error costs you money. And a quality floor: qualification requirements will thin out the summer-season operators who gave the coast its cowboy reputation.

What to do with it as a buyer

The register isn't open yet, so no agent can be registered today, but asking any agent “are you preparing to register under the new Andalusian law, and are you insured?” is a perfectly normal question, and the reaction tells you plenty either way. It does not replace your own independent lawyer (nothing does), but it adds a filter the market never had. For how the rest of the buying machinery protects you, start with our guide to what a good lawyer checks.

Where Gáire stands

We are building this business to comply with the new framework from day one, starting with professional indemnity insurance, and we'll register as soon as the register opens, because a law that professionalises this coast is a law that suits how we wanted to work anyway.