spainrico

Let's not forget buying a brand new house can be just as frought, when the builder has not got a building licence etc.
Buying land with a house on it is probably more straight forward as it probably means it can have a building (but of course always check) buying just land can mean it is only zoned as agricultutal and sometimes no buildings are permitted.
There are bargains as often the family have moved away and the younger generation don't want old houses and lots of worthless land and would rather have the money.

fionamw

Hi, sounds brilliant and I hope you don't think we're a load of boring old *****s who want to rain on your parade. It's just that there is a load of legal stuff going on in Spain (various parts I believe) about illegal buildings having been allowed, projects to reform/extend which shouldn't have been allowed, people doing whatever they jolly well please and wondering why it all goes pear shaped, etc etc ad infinitum.
apart from all the specific advice before me, I'd also caution against two more: anything which looks like a house, seems like a house but you find out is 'agricultural' - either run a mile or check out with an INDEPENDENT solicitor and be prepared to run a mile. And a casa de apero (think I've got the name right) looks like a dinky little house you could do up but is in fact potentially limited to remain just that - a dinky little done up building. They were meant for the use of workers on the land, not for residential.
Having said all that, it sounds a brilliant dream and I hope it remains so. Don't let your heart and ignorance (in the best possible sense) let it turn into a nightmare.

anonimouse

Yes some of these properties are for real and some are remarkably good value, however, renovating houses here is not as cheap as one might think, some of the materials can be quite expensive and this alone may shock you, wish you well anyway.

Lushdaddy

Why even bother posting this?

amideislas

On one hand, there are absolutely great deals to be had in old properties, and the experience of fixing them up can be extremely rewarding.

But they're right - watch your back, and don't believe anything anyone tells you - other than getting the papers directly from the Ajuntamento and listening to what they say. Even then, have someone there who speaks the local dialect to ask specific questions, and get specific answers, in writing, if possible. Ask about property taxes, building restrictions, whether you can use the land at all.. water, electricity, sewage restrictions... etc...

The good news is that almost anything is posssible as long as you're willing to pay someone to get the proper permissions. Key word being pay.

"Oh, you wanted water? ..and Electricity? Hmm. that'll be expensive... You want to put a pool here? That will require an expensive permit... Oh, you want to.... ??? "

Find out first. Directly from the those who would know, not those who want to sell you something.

Watch your back.

jackytoo

OP did say there isn't water and electric. In some rural areas it is not even possible to get it. I would look at the possibility/cost of that first.

amideislas

I know a guy here that bought a finca on the assumption that electricity was available - Endesa told him it would be possible to install it. The main power line was only 200mtrs away from the house.

After the purchase, wouldn't you know it - the final estimate to run 200M of cable and set up a connection point for the house was €85K (from Endesa).

So, he bought a 2.5Kw solar electric system for about €30K including installation, and it works most of the time, but the maintenance costs are not cheap. It breaks often, apparently. But he obviously can't have luxuries like air conditioning, pool, or an electric oven.

Fred James

Good succinct advice!

You can buy any old house/ruin/shed that you like. You actually buy the land and that includes anything on it.

BUT - just because the land has a building on it does not mean that you can live there or even renovate it.

ANY building work will require a building licence from the town hall and if it is classed as a major work it would involve the services of an architect and a more complex approval process.

Local building laws are complex and in some areas you cannot reform a ruin unless the roof is intact and in most cases you must stick to the original layout.

Even when you have all the licences to reform it you may not be able to live in it unless it is approved as a dwelling rather than an agricultural building.

My advice, having built a house in the country (before all the rules changed), is to proceed with extreme caution or preferably not at all!

JLFS

I have personally known of 2 families that nave fallen foul of this law.

1964paul

hi we are in martos jaen ,their is some casas for sale from about 20.000
euro that need some work and the weather is a lot better than northen spain.

cricketman

There are 10,000s of rural properties in Spain that you can pick up for a few tens of thousands of euros

However, you have to realise that some parts of Spain are very rural - installing water and electricity may be almost impossible - and you may be looking at half an hour drive to the nearest shops or village, never mind an airport.

In the OPs case, I wouldnt touch it with a bargepole unless it was within 1 or 2 km of a fairly large village, in which case you could actually get materials and labour to help on the house, and you manage to sort out the elec, water and habitation licences. However, these are big IFs and I suggest you'll need 100k euros to turn your wreck into a modest livable house, in which case, you could buy a fully restored one for that in many remote areas and save yourself the hassle

punoo

Thanks everyone for your help. Have booked my flights going there in april to look around.
Casa de campo......if a property is registered under this name is it legal to live in it? I understand there need to be a certificate of habitation to live in a property..?...a bit confused!

Rosemary

Casa de campo does not indicate whether it is legal or not it just describes it as a cottage or house in the fields.

Rosemary

snikpoh

The habitation licence is mainly used for 'newer' properties and purely signifies that the property conforms to the current rules and regs. regarding habitation.

Older properties, may well not ever have been issued one if the property has stayed in the same family and simply been passed down through the generations.

However, you could make it a condition of the purchase that the current owner gets one.

punoo

So when buying a casa de campo from a registered agent....do we need to check for some other papper? What certificate or document is required to show that the property is legal?
Thanks.....still lost