Self Build in Spain: Rural versus Urban Land

Buy a plot of land and build a house in Spain - design the perfect dream home. All the information about inland Spain points to land and property being cheaper there - building on rustic land in Spain…how hard can it be?

No-one wants to rain on your parade but you need to go into such a venture with your eyes wide open. Planning permission in Spain can be a minefield of bureaucracy and red tape. First off, you need to be aware of the differences between rural and urban land. Second, you have to be clear on not only the local planning build ratio but also the regional definitions.

Thorough research and expert advice are essential; be very cynical about anyone who tells you it's as simple as buying a plot of land and building exactly what you want on it - the problems arrive when you come to register the full build of your new dream home, especially on rustic or agricultural land. In Spain, every regional government has its own system of dealing with new build developments, whether they are defined as rustic or urban. If you are planning to new build in Valencia or Andalucia you need to be aware that there have been many changes in the last two or three years.

One reassuring change is that the Valencia Land Grab Laws have now been overruled and are no longer a worry for those looking for land or property for sale around Valencia. Land and property for sale in inland Andalucia has become a growth market of late - the government, aware of the trend for foreigners to buy cheap land, has started to pressure town halls to be stricter with granting planning permission. This can leave buyers of land waiting for months for permits, which can be extremely frustrating for those keen to get on with their projects.

Here at Tropicana Properties we are often asked the question… Am I free to build on any land?
The short answer is no. Before you buy any land you must check that it will be eligible for a building permit. If you are planning to buy rural land in Spain you need to be aware that any plot classed as a ‘finca rustica' has been zoned as agricultural or rustic land and that means that it will fall into any one of the three categories of Protected, Restricted or Building land.

Urban Land
Urban land is simpler to define as it is land that is within the local planning scheme approved by both local and regional government. As a rule of thumb, in our area the present cost is between 250 to 400 Euros per square metre. In order to grant building permission, however, the proposed building must comply with certain criteria and again there is variation. Generally the plot should be able to connect to utilities, drains, water and electricity. The building must comply with certain European directives, including a 10 year build guarantee, and more recently (from September 2007) it should be at least 20% energy self sufficient to encourage the use of solar and wind energies. Finally you should check with the local planning authority on the ratio of build to land - town centres for example allow up to 100% while outlying districts may only allow 25%. Your Spanish lawyer and architect will be able to advise you.

Rural or Rustic Land
Building on rustic land in Spain is far more problematic. The golden rule here is to remember that it is the regional government directives that dictate the land registry protocol and not the local town halls, especially if you are registering your new dream home in the countryside rather than converting an existing registered cortijo "in ruin". The Junta de Andalucia (regional government) states that new buildings built on rustic plots need a minimum of 7000 square metres of land for every 100 square metres of built property (and this is below 300 metres above sea level) . Anything above this and the land required increases to as much as a 30,000 square metre plot for the same build volume.

Other issues too affect the qualification of the rustic lands status: dry land, irrigated, olive or almond groves, fruit trees, agricultural use and so on, all compromise the registration of your building. Rural plots in our area start from 6 Euros per square metre (for dry land) to as much as 60 Euros or more for fruit farm land. It is not uncommon to find that in certain cases for the owner to register their dream country property they may have to prove their employment status as a farmer or agricultural worker in Spain. This is a situation that entails a whole set of economic and social issues affecting your legal, fiscal and residential status both in Spain and your home country.

While local town hall authorities can give permissions at this time for new builds on smaller plots (usually around 3,000 to 4,000 square metres - as in Jete, Otivar and Itrabo) a problem can arise afterwards when the land registry declines to stamp approval of the licence, since by the Junta directive there is insufficient land in order to justify the registration of the full build. It is our understanding that in Spain, wooden/timber homes are considered as temporary dwellings - however recent changes suggest that local town hall planning discretions are in play. In Almunecar, for example, permission for timber homes on rustic plots is granted but only as an "apero" (agricultural use dwelling) and the maximum registered size of build is just 50 square metres to get the licence endorsed.

Still want to self-build in Spain?
As you can see, you need to be a realist when you buy in rural Spain - mortgage problems (bank valuations of country property in Spain are much lower than urban properties), rights of way, hunting rights and septic tanks are some of the other issues that need to be considered. Also you need to find a good architect, preferably one who has been recommended locally. The architect will put together the plans of your proposed home and help you to submit these plans with the application and the fee to the town hall, using your lawyer as a point of contact. This application will cost between two to eight per cent of estimated construction costs, depending on the town hall. Generally inland authorities are much cheaper. The average time span for the application is between three and six months after applying, assuming that all is in order and compliant with building regulations and local directives. You don't see brightly painted or decorated houses in the traditional Andalucian white villages.

"Is it difficult, to do?" I hear you say. Well, if you asked me this ten years ago, I would have said no, but today governments do not want to lose control of the rate of development so they are clamping down on this area. But it isn't all bad news - the key, as with any other kind of property purchase, is careful research and securing expert advice. Each town hall operates differently and there are always loop holes to all kind of restrictions, it is just a case of researching with your architect and discovering them. If you have good advice from someone who knows the system, you can help your case immensely. Some buyers, for example, register as almond farmers, in order to be granted permission to build on "finca rustica" - do remember that this requires that the land be used for farming purposes!

To sum up, if you plan to self build in Spain - and particularly if you are planning on building on rustic land in Spain - you need to be aware of what you are taking on and get expert advice right from the start. The rewards can be immeasurable - little beats the satisfaction of seeing your dream home take shape, according to plans you have helped create. And when you (finally) sit on your terrace, sipping a glass of wine, and watching the sun go down on your very own piece of Spain…you may even be able to look back on the long journey it took to get there, and smile.