land planning consent - Page 2

Thank you for your reply I will take all that on board. Many thanks

@Movingon - "you cannot cheat an honest man" 

I consider myself to be honest, I also consider myself cheated through the poor experience we had with an agent.

I appreciate the sentiment though

Before you buy land for building check with the town hall, architects etc. As previously mentioned. If it’s possible to build on land or a plot it usually has a higher purchase value. The local town hall should have a Certificado Urbanistico for the plot. It tells you what can be build on the land.

Some bank repossessions have semi-build properties on them. They look attractive all you have to do is complete the build. It’s not always the case. Planning permissions have a time Limit for completion. Whats on sale is a plot of land with a pile of bricks. Only the land has value.

When choosing architects, lawyers, accountants. Ask for their professional qualifications. They should be a member of a Colegio. Ie: Architect Colegio de arquitectos. There are many people trading on the Costa Blanca without the necessary qualifications. 

If the land is classified as building land then most (not all) towns in Spain allow a house to be built providing you own 10,000 square meters. There are of course restrictions/conditions on the size, and probably the style, of the proposed build but you'd be informed of what is acceptable when you make enquiries to the town planning dept and then arrange your plans to suit.

So engage the services of a lawyer and get them to write to the planning dept to find out directly what's required or go in to the town council yourself and simply ask.