Toni Marqués -Real Estate Solicitor in Mallorca-

30/04/2022

https://tonimarques.com/jailillegal-building-works-in-mallorca/

Promoter has been convicted to ONE YEAR or jail for illegal works on his property in Mallorca. War agains illegalities reach Criminal courts.

28/02/2020

EVERYTHING BUILT BEFORE 1956, IS LEGAL?
That's not true.
What happens is that everything built on rustic land before 1956 is legal even if it is in a protected area (where the use of housing is not allowed) or the minimum plot to build is not met.
However, uses cannot be changed even if the volume is legal. A stable or storage room, even if built before 1956, is a stable or storage and cannot be transformed into a dwelling. If this is done without authorisation, the use is not permitted.

28/02/2020

LEGALIZED BY THE LAPSE OF TIME. PRESCRIPTION IS THE SAME AS LEGALITY?
False: This is my favorite and it's related to the last one. The prescription.
The administration loses the right to order restitution to the current state (demolition if not legalizable) after a few years.

28/02/2020

IF THE CONSTRUCTIONS ARE RECORDED IN THE PROPERTY REGISTER, DOES IT MENAS ARE LEGAL?
Well, I understand that it seems logical that what is properly registered in the property registry is legal, but it is not.
Until a few years ago anyone could go to a Notary, make an inscription of new work ( called Obra Nueva) stating that they had a house and then the Property Registrar would register it in the Land Registry without asking for a plan or a licence.
In this case, the construction appears today registered and yet it never had a license.
Nowadays it is not so easy anymore; when someone goes to the Notary to declare a new building and does not have a license, the Notary warns in the deed of the lack of license. The property registrar informs the administration that a construction without a licence has been registered.
If the construction is more than 8 years old and the right to order demolition has expired, it is registered and the authorities do nothing because they can no longer do so.
A house that is illegal is registered.

28/02/2020

IF THE PROPERTY I'M WILLING TO BUY HAS A CERTIFICATE OF NON-EXISTENCE OF AN URBANISTS INFRINGEMENT FILE MEAN IT'S LEGAL?
FALSE. This certificate is issued by the Town Hall. What they do is look at the computer and certify that there are no proceedings open against that property. But it should NOT be confused with the certificate of non-existence of infringement. This second certificate is issued when the municipal technician visits the house, compares what has been built with the licenses granted and certifies that everything is legal.
Because it is confusing (and has been used to mislead more than one buyer) some municipalities have stopped issuing it and only provide a certificate of current status. This means that they will see the property and certify what is there.

28/02/2020

IS IT TRUE ILLEGALITIES IN MALLORCA ARE ONLY A PROBLEM ON RUSTIC LAND?
FALSE. It is true that the biggest problems are on rural land, but there are also illegalities in the urban area.
A sloping tile roof converted without a licence into a plain terrace (which happens frequently) will impede getting a reform licence.
A gallery or closed porch to extend the kitchen is also an illegality.

28/02/2020

IF A HOUSE HAS A HABITABILITY CERTIFICATE,DOES IT MEANS IT'S LEGAL?
FALSE. I have heard this statement hundreds of times and it is completely wrong.
First, because the Habitabitability Certificate (Cédula de Habitabilidad) only certifies that the house is suitable to live in.
The confusion arises because if a house is built today, the certificate is not obtained until the promoter obtains the end of the municipal work. This document is issued by the Town Hall after having checked that the house has been built with a licence and that the construction coincides with the licence granted. This means that if it is not 100% legal, it cannot be obtained.
Now then. A house built (even if it is 100% illegal) before 1987 can still have a Cédula de Habitabilidad and will continue to be illegal.
A recently built house can have obtained the Cédula de Habitabilidad and then suffered an illegal transformation and therefore is illegal (and has a Cédula de Habitabilidad).

16/03/2017

A few years ago, when a purchaser asked about the legal status of a property before buying it, the answer was always the same “Don’t worry. Mallorca has plenty of properties with illegal parts, but nobody cares”.