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Land Specialists, Plots of Land Costa del Sol, Land for Sale Marbella,
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Building Regulations | Costa del Sol
It
is not the intention to go into great detail on the subject of building
rules and regulations. However, as a general guide
you will find outlined below a summary of the main factors to consider
when selecting a building plot. Be aware that many regulations are
unique to certain Townhalls and many Townhalls interpret the rules
in differing ways.
The
Spanish Parliament has passed a law on the 1st July 2007,
aimed at controlling property speculators whom the government blames
for spiralling house prices. Official documents will list everybody
who has owned any piece of land in the five years before
its development. Senior local government officials will
also have to declare their assets.
Building
land tends to fall into two distinct categories namely urban
land and rustic land. Generally speaking urban land
is found in the areas surrounding the town, whilst rustic land is
found in the countryside, usually some distance away from the town.
Urban
Land Regulations | Costa del Sol
Designated
approved building/development land and described as such
on the government approved General Plan of the area. This plan,
which is revised periodically, is a public document and can be viewed
freely by anyone who cares to enquire at the appropriate department
in the local Townhall. Because this type of land has been already
approved for building, outline planning permission is not necessary.
The building project process can begin almost immediately.
Plot
Sizes | Costa del Sol
Building
plots range in size from 600m² to 2,000m² depending
on the conditions applied to the urbanization plan (Plan
Parcial). Usually urbanizations comprising individual houses
are made up of plots of 800m² - 1000m².
Area
Occupancy | Costa del Sol
The
maximum size of the property to be built is governed
by another set of rules, again this varies from Townhall
to Townhall. As a general rule, the building may not occupy
more than 20% to 30% of the area of the building plot.
Example:
A building plot of 1,000m² with an area occupancy restriction
of 25% would allow a building to have a ground floor of 250m².
Another
regulation to be considered is the Total Construction factor,
this governs the maximum number of square metres in total allowed
to be built on the plot. This factor again usually ranges from around
20% to 30% per m². Therefore if we take the example above,
given an:
Area
Occupancy restriction of 25% and a Total Construction factor of
0.3 and a plot size of 1,000 m².
The
Maximum ground floor occupancy is 1000 x 0.25 = 250m²
The
Maximum overall construction is 1000 x 0.3= 300m².
This
would allow a house with a large ground floor area of 250m²
plus a small upstairs of 50m². (Total constructed area
300m²)
Or
alternatively and possibly a more practical arrangement might be
two floors of 150m² each. (Total constructed area 300m²)
It
should be noted that these are the maximum areas of occupancy and
construction however they exclude a cellar, (which may
be the same area as the ground floor,) terracing, porches and a
swimming pool.
There
are other rules governing the maximum height of the building, usually
between 6 and 7 metres, and the distance from the boundary usually
between 3 and 7 metres. Rules also restrict the height of sold
boundary walls typically 1 to 1.80 metres.
Sometimes
the ascetic appearance of the building is restricted, but
generally speaking unless an outrageous design is planned this usually
does not present a planning problem.
