Difficulties in building in rural areas

Those who love the beauty of the Balearic Islands are interested in ensuring that they are not urbanised. Apparently, the Balearic legislator and the island administration see it the same way. This makes it more and more difficult to build a property in rural areas (“suelo rustico”) on the Balearic Islands.

While you have to pay high prices per square metre for building land (“suelo urbano”), the prices for undeveloped land in rural areas are more affordable per square metre. However, in order to obtain a building permit, a number of legal and official hurdles have to be overcome. Both the Building Law of the Balearic Islands of 2018 and the Balearic Agricultural Law of 2019 have contributed to the fact that building in rural areas has become much more difficult.

Under the generic term “suelo rustico” one finds a number of differently defined zones. The PTI (Plan Territorial Insular) of the Island Council already lists a number of nature protection zones in which building development is excluded from the outset. In certain zones, a minimum plot size of 50,000 m2 is required. In ordinary rural areas the minimum plot size is 15,000 m2. Only one family house may be built per plot and there are restrictions on the type and nature of the property. A construction method typical for Ibiza is mandatory.

According to the second transitional provision of the Balearic Islands’ agricultural law (Ley 3/2019), the so-called ZAVA zone (“Zonas de alto valor argrario”) must first be defined and limited (“delimitación”). However, such a delimitation in rural areas has not yet taken place on Ibiza, unlike on the neighbouring island of Mallorca. If one interprets the provision of the Agricultural Law, no new building permit may be issued in the rural area of Ibiza until the limitation of the ZAVA zone mentioned in the law has been carried out by the authorities.

In the case of an old building ruin, the first thing to clarify is whether it is even a habitable house. A barn or a stable cannot simply be converted into a residential house. In the case of old buildings, which are often not even in the land registry, the responsible municipality must first of all take a stand on the age and the type of use of the property. Ideally, one receives a municipal age certificate in which the building is described as habitable (“vivienda”). However, if the dilapidated old house does not comply with the current building regulations (“fuera de ordenación”), a project for its reconstruction will fail. In the past, in rural areas, buildings were often built without a building permit and it was hoped that all building infringements would be time-barred after 8 years. Since the new law, however, building sins in rural areas are no longer subject to the statute of limitations and, in addition, the owner is threatened with heavy fines.

There are also two competent authorities for a building application concerning a plot of land in rural areas: One is the building authority of the municipality where the property is located and the other is a building commission of the Ibiza Island Council (Consell Insular). The fact that two authorities check the building application means that the approval procedure can sometimes be lengthy.

Therefore, extreme caution should be taken when buying a rural property for building purposes. On the way to obtaining a building permit, a number of legal and official hurdles must be cleared. Before the planned purchase, it is strongly recommended to consult a specialist.