Buying land
 

I have considered buying land to have a house built on it in the Costa Tropical area. I have no idea of the process involved at the moment it is just an idea.

Is land available to buy near to the coast, within about 10 miles would be good but the closer the better.

Cost of a plot to build a house with an average garden?

Can an a purchase agreement be in place as in the UK where the purchase would be subject to obtaining planning permission?

The big one I suspect!!!! What is the process for planning permission, building regulations etc?

Re: Buying land
 

What I managed to find out is that can be different from region to region. Your best bet is to find somebody local who is into "papers" and really knows everything. For example here in the nearby in one village is fairly easy to get a ruin and rebuild it, the other village, 15km away will make your life living hell to sort out the construction papers for basically the same thing.

The truth is that not even the "general knowledge" of local people doesn't help to much... I heard many "stories" by neighbors when it comes to sorting out papers that are pure fantasy and fiction. So my best suggestion is to find the "local paper guy", the one who really knows what's cooking in his pot.

And don't forget to double check at the city hall to see what can you build on the actual plot!

Re: Buying land
 

I can tell you that we bought a plot not too long ago, but that was Costa Brava. Costa Tropical seems a bit pricier and there doesn't seem to be that much choice when it comes to plots. You can do a purchase agreement just like the UK, we did the same. It depends on the area, but be aware that if there are no mains it can be costly and a difficult process. Usually you can build on 20% of the land and it states if you're allowed to build a 2 storey or bungalow, but you still can't guarantee that they will accept every type of building until you've submitted the actual plans.

Re: Buying land
 

I'd second all the advice given above.

I only remind prospective wannabees that in Spain, money is rather difficult (for most people) to get, so one thing you can expect is that with every step, someone will have their hand out. In some cases, the demand can be jaw-dropping, and misinformation for the sole purpose of improving the payout is rife - and the law doesn't view naivety too kindly.

So, bone-up on your Spanish, and get your facts straight, and you'll be far less likely to be victimised.

The moral of the story is that it's always better to know the people helping you, so that their first thought isn't simply, "how much can I get".

Good luck...

Re: Buying land
 

Having done just that twelve years ago I guess I am qualified to pass on some advice.

There are three main classifications of land and they are laid down by the local town hall in their General Plan which is published every few years.

There is Urban land, which is where you find groups of housing in and near the town centre and there is Rustic land which is in the Campo out of the town centre. There is also protected land which can never be built on.

Urban land usually is available in small plots being sold by developers who bought a big parcel some time ago. These plots are typically 1000m2 with some half that and others more. Each plot will usually be authorised to build one house. The size and design will be decided by the local planning regulations but the size is usually a percentage of the plot size and there will be limitations to the number of floors etc.

If you find an urban plot for sale it should be reasonably easy to get a building licence, but the procedure is pretty complicated and you will have to employ an architect to manage the whole project.

Rustic land is another matter entirely. The rules in Andalucia changed about 12 years ago when they introduced a new law governing the use of all land. Effectively you will not get a building licence unless you have 30000m2 of land which is being used for active agriculture and you will have to prove that it is an active operation and taxes are being paid on the income from it. It may be less than that if classified as "wet" rather than "dry" land. A suitable water deposit with a supply of agricultural water may allow it to be reclassified as "wet" but most available plots are "dry".

There is again a limit on the size of building that you can erect if you do eventually get a licence. Plots with a ruin on it were always a way round the problem if you reformed the ruin but again, they changed the rules about this. The ruin must have an existing roof to be eligible for reform and the footprint and total size must conform to the original - in other words you will need a big ruin, not an old cowshed.

To build on protected land is not possible, unless you have vast amount of money and can successfully bribe someone in central government. No, I'm not joking! Near us is a huge develpment built in the National Park. Strangely just before it was built the boundaries of the National Park were suitably altered! However most of it is now slipping down the hillside into the sea - a sort of poetic justice but pretty hard on the owners.

So, find a decent, legal, urban plot and you can probably get permission but it will take a lot of time and money before you see a brick on it. Round here, within a decent distance from the coast, I would expect to pay €200k or possibly much more.

Here's a nice one.

Unique Location - Plot in Cotobro with breathtaking views | Inmobiliaria Karcher Real Estate

Re: Buying land
 

Thanks for that Fred, would 200k be for the land or the land and the build? I am assuming the land.
The one you posted is a bit too much, well,,,,,,, a big bit too much TBH:lol:

Re: Buying land
 

No, just the land.

The building cost depends on the quality of build you want, but the very lowest would be €1000/m2. It could be double that or more if you wanted the best quality construction.

That doesn't include all the stuff outside the basic building - terraces, pool, walls etc. Our added cost for that was about 50% of the house cost.

On top of that you have the cost of the architects - say 10%. Building licences could be 7% and legal fees another big chunk.

Building your own house is very satisfying and you get exactly what you want but it is NOT cheap. At the moment, buying an established house that has been around for some time and is clearly totally legal is by far the cheapest option - there are some very low prices around where people are desperate to sell.

Re: Buying land
 

We are in the "poorer" part of Costa Tropical, small lot here sold for400k euros, built a bungalow on it, so add the cost of land to the build very expensive, Fred is totally bang on memorise what he has said.

Re: Buying land
 

400K? Maybe during the boom and the best sea view you can imagine. We didn't pay more than 30K in an urbanisation near Lloret Blanes 10 mins from the coast (size 600m2) and it's all pretty straight forward. 20% of the plot can be built on and all connections are available. You can find all types of buildings from old to very modern in the area.

Re: Buying land
 

Just as an example this is not too far from ours and you can get cheaper.
Terreno en Lloret de Mar en Urbanitzacions en Urbanización Lloret Residencial 34 123418282

A bit more and you can a plot closer to the coast near Tossa de Mar
http://www.fotocasa.es/terreno/tossa...n=4&RowGrid=11

Re: Buying land
 

Oh, you wanted electricity? +€40K
Oh, you wanted water? +€20K

Does it work like that there too?

Re: Buying land
 

Have a look at the Algarve, the process is much simpler, safer and by the sound of it cheaper as well.

Re: Buying land
 

The OP wants to buy a plot in Granada, not in the north of Spain.

I am sure there are some lovely plots there, but that was not the question asked.

Re: Buying land
 

No, nothing like those ridiculous charges. If it's urban land it is easy, rustic land is a little more, but nothing remotely like the prices you mention.

As for water, they recently built one of the largest dams in Europe just up the road and that will eventually bring our water cost in the Campo down to a lot less than 10c/M3.

Re: Buying land
 

If you have dry land and want to put water on it you have to factor in the cost of having a deposito constructed - typically 15k. There's also the one-off fee for joining a water cooperative which can also cost several thousand. This just gives you rights to have water pumped to your deposito, for which you get charged by the hour, e.g. the tap is opened for one hour and water pumped through for say 30 euros.
Depending on the size of your land and the number of trees, you might have to purchase rights to one hour of water a week, maybe two hours every ten days, it depends on what you require and how much you pay to the cooperative for your water rights. Basically what I'm saying is that even though you pay for it, you don't just get an unlimited water supply. It can be very expensive to set up.