Building Work

Home › Building Work

Building Work

OK, so you’ve settled in nicely to your new home in Spain but there are a few tweaks that could be made here and there in order to make your dream home your ideal home. Whether it’s an en-suite, an extra bedroom, a pool or a complete refurb there are a few permissions you need before you start and the licence isn’t just the beginning!

Community Permission

If you live on a community the first thing you have to do before you select your tiles is to talk to your president or administrator to see what the community regulations are and whether they would approve of your proposed improvements.

Some communities will give you a verbal approval then add the permission into the minutes at the next Annual General Meeting; some communities however will make you wait until the next AGM to get the approval voted on so this could hold up your plans.

Profile-01-USA

Cédula de Habitabilidad (Habitation Certificate)

  • A new property is issued with a cédula de habitabilidad or certificate of habitation, this certificate means that the property complies with the town hall’s habitation requirements.
  • These are issued by the town hall to the builder on completion of new properties, stating each property has been passed as habitable. Once obtained, the Habitation Certificate has a validity of five years and states that the building conforms to the original plans submitted to the town hall.

Town Hall Permission

There are two types of building licences:
Licencia de obra menor

(Minor Works Li­cence) is re­quired for most home im­prove­ment pro­jects, in­clud­ing those of a DIY nature, on the ex­ist­ing premises (im­prove­ments which do not res­ult in an in­crease of space or rooms). This is a simple licence which shouldn’t cost too much and needs no follow up paperwork.

01
Licencia de Obra Mayor

(Ma­jor Works Li­cence) is re­quired for any pro­ject which ex­tends or changes the square meters of the prop­erty or its sur­face area (ex­ten­sions and ad­di­tions of any kind, in­clud­ing put­ting a bath­room into an ex­ist­ing space and adding a pool). This licence is obtained with a project book drawn up by an architect.

02
Once the building work has been finished the architect will need to provide a final de obra (end of works), this is important as you can’t put the work onto your deeds without this.
  • When the five years expires, the owner of the property should renew the certificate via the town hall, who will issue the new certificate, a Licencia de Segunda Ocupación in the name of the owner of the property, this second certificate is valid for ten years.
  • If any reforms are made to the property the habitation certificate has to be updated, this is done with an architect’s project which has to be presented to the town hall along with a copy of the property deeds.
  • Since 2005 it has become law that any property sold has to be supplied with an up to date certificate and it is the seller’s responsibility to provide this to the new owner. To be honest though, the only company ever wanting to see the certificate is the water company who require it to change the contract into the new owner’s name.

Do you need an expat solution? Then... Contact Us!

Energy Performance Certificate

  • From June 1 2013 it is a legal requirement that all properties for sale or rent in Spain must have an Energy Performance Certificate (Certificado de Eficiencia Energética, CEE). The certificate provides information about a property’s energy use and energy efficiency, it includes recommendations for avoiding energy waste and gives the property a rating between A and G based on its energy efficiency and carbon emissions.
  • The regulations were brought into Spain following an EU Directive aimed at reducing primary energy consumption by at least 20% by 2020, this is commonly known as the “20-20-20” objective, which all EU member states adhere to.

When is an Energy Performance Certificate needed?

  • Energy Performance Certificates are required as soon as a property is advertised as being for sale or rent. A certificate is needed whether the property is advertised online, with real estate agents or privately. Notaries will require a copy of the certificate in order to sign the deeds when buying or selling your home.

Getting the Energy Performance Certificate

  • The property will need to be evaluated by a qualified architect who will then report the findings to the local government or Junta. The cost of the inspection will depend on the size of the property. An Energy Performance Certificate for a property is valid for ten years.
  • Unfortunately a lot of the properties get a fail grade as they don’t have double glazing, cavity wall insulation, loft insulation etc. this doesn’t affect the sale though.

What is the procedure when the building work is finished?

  • Minor works such as re-paving your drive, raising the boundary walls and painting your house don’t need to be put onto your house deeds, however any extensions need to be put onto your deeds as an ampliación de obra (extension of works) as you have increased the size and layout of your property.
  • This is done be­fore the Not­ary Pub­lic and then registered at the Land Re­gistry. Taxes are payable on the value you have added to the property but they are quite small in relation to most taxes in Spain.

What if the work was done a while ago?

  • When the building work was done more than 5 years ago and the owner wants to legalise it, this can be legalised with a “certificado de antigüedad” which an architect prepares, this is then taken to the Notary and an “Obra Nueva” title deed is signed.
  • The law changed on the 19th August 2014, and if the reform is after this date you now have to wait 15 years to be able to apply for a certificate of antiquity. If done before the 19th August 2014 it is possible with only 5 years of antiquity.
  • Of course this also it gives the Town hall much more time to be able to find and fine people for work done in previous years which was not legalised.

Why bother to legalise my building work?

  • If you have done work on your property and it’s not on your house deeds, when you come to sell the buyers will want the deeds updated before they will go ahead with the sale, this could cause a delay and potentially lose you a buyer. Even if selling is not even an option, by making sure your plans are up to date it will mean inheritors won’t have problems in the future.

Anything else I need to do?

  • Your IBI (SUMA) bill is calculated on the square metres of your property, so if you have made alterations you will need to notify the local SUMA office. Your bill will increase slightly but if you don’t do this they will catch up with you!

Habitation Certificate

Changes to your property will affect your habitation certificate and this will need to be updated.

Building Legalisation Checklist (PDF, 268.6 KB)
Habitation Certificate Checklist (PDF, 281 KB)
Energy Rating Certificate Checklist (PDF, 273.31 KB)

Cédula de Habitabilidad (Habitation Certificate)

  • A new property is issued with a cédula de habitabilidad or certificate of habitation, this certificate means that the property complies with the town hall’s habitation requirements.
  • These are issued by the town hall to the builder on completion of new properties, stating each property has been passed as habitable. Once obtained, the Habitation Certificate has a validity of five years and states that the building conforms to the original plans submitted to the town hall.
  • When the five years expires, the owner of the property should renew the certificate via the town hall, who will issue the new certificate, a Licencia de Segunda Ocupación in the name of the owner of the property, this second certificate is valid for ten years.
  • If any reforms are made to the property the habitation certificate has to be updated, this is done with an architect’s project which has to be presented to the town hall along with a copy of the property deeds.
  • Since 2005 it has become law that any property sold has to be supplied with an up to date certificate and it is the seller’s responsibility to provide this to the new owner. To be honest though, the only company ever wanting to see the certificate is the water company who require it to change the contract into the new owner’s name.

Energy Performance Certificate

  • From June 1 2013 it is a legal requirement that all properties for sale or rent in Spain must have an Energy Performance Certificate (Certificado de Eficiencia Energética, CEE). The certificate provides information about a property’s energy use and energy efficiency, it includes recommendations for avoiding energy waste and gives the property a rating between A and G based on its energy efficiency and carbon emissions.
  • The regulations were brought into Spain following an EU Directive aimed at reducing primary energy consumption by at least 20% by 2020, this is commonly known as the “20-20-20” objective, which all EU member states adhere to.

When is an Energy Performance Certificate needed?

  • Energy Performance Certificates are required as soon as a property is advertised as being for sale or rent. A certificate is needed whether the property is advertised online, with real estate agents or privately. Notaries will require a copy of the certificate in order to sign the deeds when buying or selling your home.

Getting the Energy Performance Certificate

  • The property will need to be evaluated by a qualified architect who will then report the findings to the local government or Junta. The cost of the inspection will depend on the size of the property. An Energy Performance Certificate for a property is valid for ten years.
  • Unfortunately a lot of the properties get a fail grade as they don’t have double glazing, cavity wall insulation, loft insulation etc. this doesn’t affect the sale though.

Do you need an expat solution? Then... Contact Us!