Spain: New Law to Clean up Property Industry

A new Spanish law brought into force on the 1st July is designed to bring greater transparency to the planning system and to increase confidence in the Spanish property industry. The new Spanish law will address urban sprawl, how to sustain and manage growth in cities, and protection of the environment. The new law also expressly defines ownership rights, landowners’ obligations and the right of citizens to participate in urban planning proceedings.

In an attempt to prevent abuse of the planning system, it will now be a requirement to make public the names of those who will benefit from land that has been reclassified as available for building. This means that public officials who have ties to the property industry or a property developer will be obliged to disclose this publicly as part of the planning process.

Isabel Blanco of law firm Irwin Abogados, said: “If the law is adhered to then the levels of corruption which have gained the Spanish property market a bad reputation should be significantly reduced. It appears that, in the most part, the new law will alleviate many concerns that people have surrounding buying a property in Spain.”