About the Spanish Land Grab Law..

Legal

Land grab. The phrase alone can cause anxiety and fear in property owners, especially those who have invested in property abroad. It’s scary to contemplate putting your hard earned money into a dream vacation property, only to have it taken away from you at less than market value. This has happened to some property owners in Spain, but there are ways to protect yourself from having it happen to you.

What Is The Land Grab Law?

The Ley Reguladora de la Actividad Urbaniste, or LRAU, is a law enacted in Spain in 1994. Its purpose was to facilitate development and improvement of rural lands that had been neglected or were in need of repairs. The law allowed local governments to reclassify previously rural land as an urbanization area, opening it up for development. Working in concert with local authorities, developers could force land owners to sell all or part of their property at prices well below market value, and even make the property owners pay large sums of money for infrastructure construction as well.

LRAU Abuses

While enacted with positive intentions, the LRAU quickly became subject to abuses. In some of the more popular coastal areas, such as the Costa Blanca, unscrupulous developers took advantage of the law. They went after property that had been purchased as much as 20 or 30 years previously but was now extremely valuable due to the exploding popularity of Spanish property. As a result, some property owners lost a great deal of money when they were compelled to sell and even to pay for land improvements, too.

International Protest

In recent years the LRAU has come under fire in the European Parliament. Literally hundreds of Britons and other foreigners have lost property along the Costa Blanca thanks to abuses of the LRAU, and Spain now faces the potential of being brought before the European Court of Justice. This is a very unpleasant possibility to most provincial legislators, so many have promised to revisit the LRAU and reform the law. They have also promised to develop a compensation package for those who have already lost their property due to LRAU abuses.

Are You At Risk?

Perhaps, so you need to do some thorough investigating before purchasing Spanish property. In general, if the property you want to buy is already in a declared urbanization area you’re probably safe. However, if you’re considering a more rural property then it’s critical that you obtain legal assistance to make sure all necessary searches are carried out on the property. Find out if any new development is planned in the area, especially if there are plans for new roads, golf courses, or other urbanization projects. Coastal areas are most at risk of being subject to LRAU statutes, so be especially cautious before you buy property in undeveloped areas along the coastline.

Jamos - www.spaingolfproperty.co.uk