Rights with old obras.
 

Is there a time period when any work illegaly done to a property without permission becomes legal?
For example. If you put a window in a wall 15 years earlier and no one complains would a new vecino have any right to have that window taken out?
I seem to recall that in the UK there was such a thing, that after 9 years it wasn't possible.

Re: Rights with old obras.
 

It used to be said that if it existed for 4 years and you were not ordered by the Ayunatamiento to "cease and desist" then you could apply for retrospective permission and it had to be given although you would have to pay a fine and costs.

Since the furore over illegal properties it is now said this is not the case and how do you prove the 4 years anyway?

Re: Rights with old obras.
 

I have a friend in exactly this situation.

• He bought his house 2009
• He was told that his pergola, pool (and other things) were illegal
• He told them that they had been there for over 4 years
• They said prove it
• He showed them their plan on the catastral website and photo (showing pergola and pool etc.)
• They then lost (;)) his file and the plan/photo also went missing
• He 'found' a photo with 2005 date on it(:sneaky:)
• He paid fine
• They accepted this and all is now legal

Re: Rights with old obras.
 

I bought my house 12 years ago from a Spanish seller who bought it new, 30 years ago and did a few alterations in his time.

Two years ago I thought of selling and checked on the legality of all that had been done before I bought the property. I don’t really have to go on, do I?

There is no record of the large swimming pool, double garage and two-bedroomed separate apartment, not even the driveway. I spoke to my independent solicitor at the time of buying, and the previous owner, a councillor and high-up local politician, and they just gave me the Spanish shrug and uttered Bob Marley’s words, ‘Don’t worry.’

I did ask an architect at the town hall, on the quiet, enquiring whether I could legalise the situation. He said it was impossible and that if I persisted the offending structures would have to be demolished.

Not a word has passed my lips since then, but I do worry when I hear the sound of bulldozers in the street.

Re: Rights with old obras.
 

As many of you may know, in the not so distant past it was normal for people to swap property for mule etc etc and a lot of deals were made in bars in card games when there is no paperwork changing hands, just a shake of hands.
If this took place several years ago and especially when the gamblers are either dead or moved away, how would these difficulties be resolved with the new owners?