The 5 checks in short: registration does not prove legal construction, the licencia de ocupación is essential, unpermitted extensions should be legalised before the purchase, on rustic land the 10,000 m² rule of thumb applies, and debts on the property (IBI, community fees) follow the property. All 5 you do before the arras contract, because from that point you are committed. Below I explain them one by one.
Check 1: registration is not legality
The most expensive misconception on this coast: “it is in the land registry, so it must be fine.” No. The registry says who owns the property and which charges rest on it. It says nothing about whether everything that stands there was built with a permit. A villa can be perfectly registered with a pool and an extension that never had a permit.
Your lawyer therefore checks 2 tracks separately: the registry (the nota simple) and the planning situation at the town hall. Only when those 2 match what you see on site is the property what it appears to be.
Check 2: the licencia de ocupación
The licencia de ocupación (or the more recent declaración responsable) is the document that says the property may be lived in. Without it you will have problems with utility connections, and renting it out is completely off the table.
Ask for it explicitly, and look at the date. With older properties the document sometimes exists but was never renewed after a major renovation. Your lawyer knows exactly what is required in your municipality.
Check 3: unpermitted extensions and pools
A great many properties on this coast have been extended over the years: an extra room, a covered terrace, a pool. Far from always with a permit. As long as the previous owner lives there, nobody notices. From the moment you are the owner, it is your problem: at a later sale, at a renovation application, or when the town hall comes knocking.
The rule is simple: have it legalised before the purchase, or have the cost of legalisation calculated and offset it in the price. Legalisation is often possible, but not in the week before the notary.
Check 4: rustic land and the 10,000 m² rule of thumb
Thinking of a finca in the Benissa countryside? Then know that on rustic land (suelo rústico) in the Valencia region, as a rule of thumb, a minimum of 10,000 m² of land is needed to be allowed to build. A plot of 5,000 m² “where you can put something up later” is usually a plot where you can never put anything up.
Do not buy on a seller’s promises. Have the building possibilities confirmed in writing by the town hall before you sign.
Check 5: debts follow the property
Overdue IBI (property tax) and overdue contributions to the community of owners (comunidad) stay attached to the property, not to the previous owner. If you buy an apartment with 3 years of unpaid community fees, you may have to cover part of it.
So, as standard: a recent nota simple, the latest IBI bill, and for apartments and urbanisations a certificate from the community confirming there are no arrears. A seller who refuses to provide these documents has given you their answer.
Who does these checks?
An independent lawyer, and one costs about 1% of the purchase price. Independent means: not the seller’s lawyer, and not someone recommended by the selling side. What that 1% covers exactly, and which other costs come on top, is set out in my guide on the buying costs. The complete buying process is on the buying page.
Questions about this
Does registration in the land registry prove a property was built legally?
No. That is the most expensive misconception on this coast: the building permits and the actual situation have to be checked separately.
What is a nota simple?
A recent extract from the land registry. It shows who owns the property and which charges rest on it: mortgages, embargoes, easements.
Can I buy a property with an unpermitted extension?
Yes, but have it legalised before the purchase or offset the cost in the price. After completion, the problem is yours.
Further reading
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