Process & legal · 2 July 2026 · 5 min read
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 3,500+ 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 requires professional qualifications, professional indemnity and surety insurance, a declaration of responsibility, transparency obligations, and a physical presence in Andalusia (an office, or a registered address for online-first businesses).
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 a public register gives 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
From now on, asking any agent “are you registered under the new Andalusian law, and 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 Trébol stands
We are building this business to comply with the new framework from day one, insurance and registration included, because a law that professionalises this coast is a law that suits how we wanted to work anyway.