We are finally having our pool installed and have a question to ask.

Its all above board (as far as we are aware) An architect drew up the plans and submitted them to the townhall. We had to go to the town hall and pay two fees, 295€ for a licence to build the pool and 500€ as a municipal tax. We now have the licence and work begins next week.

However we are not sure if all of this includes the addition to our escritura. We have no paperwork that says so, all we do know is that the architect took copies of our escritura and nie's etc before drawing up the plans and submitting them.

So does the fact that the plans were submitted and a license issued mean that the paperwork to add to our escritura has been done? Or is this an extra expense we will have to undertake at a later date?

As I understand it, once the pool is completed the architect will sign it off and you will get a "fin de obra" from the town hall.

With this paperwork, you can get the escritura updated andregistered again AND you must get the cadastral updated.

Is this the townhall architect who approved the licence or our architect who drew up the plans snikpoh? I just want to make sure everything is completed in the correct way and not be caught out.

The builder was going on about us needing an official receipt for the work he does in which case we will have more taxes to pay- couldn't work out what he was talking about really. We know about 'black money' but it is nothing to do with that, he has done plenty of work for us in the past and given us printed receipts for work up to 4-5000€. Why would they want to know how much it cost us, surely thats between the builder and us, the town hall have already wheedled 800€ from us why would we have to pay more just for an official receipt.

The building licence fee is based on a percentage of the cost. Usually the architect submits an estimate at the time of requesting the licence. Usually they put in the lowest acceptable price to keep the cost of the fee lower.

However, councils are wise to this and as they now get so little income from building licences they are asking for proof of the cost on completion and if it is higher than the original estimate, they charge you a revised fee.

A local pool building company built mine, at the time I asked if all the paperwork was in order, he said that as it was his job he had lots of contacts at the local town hall and I was not to worry. He even put it in the contract that he would deal with the licences etc.
10 years later I got a certified letter asking me to attend the town hall, they showed me a Google earth photo of my pool and said I owed 3 years back taxes! Obviously I paid, contacted the builder who is still building pools, he said that I had got away with seven years, so why was I complaining!!

The fees that you pay YOUR architect are also for him to act as your project manager - that's how it works in Spain. He is supposed to come out and inspect the work at various stages. He is then the one who organises the 'fin de obra'. As I understand it, you will have to do the escritura, cadastral and registro.

Thanks snikpoh that is what I needed. So I just need to keep on top of things and make sure I get another inspection by the architect on completion. I'll have a word with the builder when he comes.

By the way, after last night the 'pool team' came and laid out the groundwork to be removed and said the excavator driver will be here on monday- Of course this is Spain and he turned up this morning As I type this he's been at it since 11am and must be over half way done by now!

Our neighbour sold their house;the pool had been built 12 years ago by the same builder who had built their villa, and they had a block licence for this, no other documentation.It wasn't added to the escritura. the sale went through no problem, no questions asked. She had been previously told that if the buyer wanted to put it on the escritura after he had bought her house, then it was up to him!

It's quite possible that you may be entitled to some of that payment back.
We are at the point where the work on our pool has been signed off, we now have to go to the town hall to get the first occupation licence.
We also have to get a form from them to claim back the 600€ they took from use, which was for any possible damage to the road that passes our house.
Our architect thinks it will probably take two years for the refund to be deposited in our account, she is more than likely correct in that assumption as last time they had to refund us money it did take two years.
In our case going to the notary and having the escritura updated is not included in the architects fees.

Do you have to obtain a licence if you have an above ground pool which is constructed ie. made from stone/concrete etc.? And does it then have to be added to the escritura?

As I understand it, anything on a concrete base is deemed permanent and needs a license and needs to be on the cadastral and the escritura.

A 'normal' above ground pool is plastic and just sits on the rough ground - this is OK and does not needs plans etc.

Have you thought about a 'deposito'?

Interesting you say that. When we built our house the architect listed the pool in the "proyecto" as a "deposit for water with a secondary recreational use".

Nothing needed to go on the catastral or the escritura.

We already have a water 'deposito' at the top end of our land, so would we be able to have another one??

Yes, in addition to our "pool deposito" we also have a 200000 litre closed deposito.

Yes you do need a licence for it, you also must have an architect to draw up plans, the town hall wouldn't even speak to us about a licence until we got the plans.
Once the work has been signed off by the architect you then get the certificate of first occupation (a daft name for it on an old building) from the town hall which makes it legal.
Anything that is a permanent structure should be put on the escritura, if it's not on there then it would undoubtedly cause a problem should you wish to sell the property.