Frances Leate
PLANS to build scores of homes, hotels and golf courses near the coast throughout the Malaga province have been put on hold because of a new law.
Development projects waiting to get under way will now be halted by a new decree passed by the Junta of Andalucía.
The decree prohibits the construction of buildings within 500 metres of the shoreline and aims to ‘scale down’ planning outlines written up in the 1980s and 90s.
In the province of Malaga the decree affects 11 towns and cities where plans were in place to build.
Estepona is one of the most affected areas where the construction of 16,751 properties is no longer guaranteed.
This includes a scheme linked to the Saudi Arabian royal family which involved building a luxury residential development with 1,477 homes, a hotel and a golf course on 60 hectares of land.
The development would have given the town hall around €8 million in revenue.
It is also thought the decree may have an impact on the new CHARE hospital development in Cerros de Aguila which will serve patients in Mijas and Fuengirola.
There are also thousands of properties still waiting to go ahead in Punta Lara, La Noria and Fuente del Baden, in Nerja, which may be jeopardised by the new ruling.
Plans to develop PlayazoBeach in Axarquia, with several hotels and tourist apartments may also now be dropped.
…once more helping Andalucía maintain its jealously-guarded spot as the region with the highest unemployment in Europe.
Some common sense from Spain at last. Spain should also sever all ties with the Saudis – Spain should not be doing business with this horrible human rights abusing country. Learn from the Saudi Marbella port project.
In any case where would the finance come from….??? The Saudis..yes that is another matter but does the coast need their 1,477 homes…. I doubt it…. and also as Fred says…the Marbella Port Project… mmmmmmm can they be trusted???.. they talk, they offer…but nothing is free… and…. think about it..!
Supply of brown envelopes dried up has it.
Thrilled as we have a beachfront property for sale! Location Location
Quick, sell it John before it’s demolished under the Ley de Costas…
Doing my best, though it’s all legal and been there since 1988. RU trying to scare me……………..
Ah, “it has been there since 1988” argument won’t help you without the correct paperwork. It’s amazing how many people think they have the correct paperwork, when in fact they don’t. Not trying to scare you, but best to get a lawyer to check eh?
Fred: And then get TWO lawyers to check him. And so on, ad nauseam.
Que Sera, sera
@Stafanjo, yep so true. You’d be mad to invest in Spain when you can’t even work out what is legal and what isn’t. Every lawyer has a different opinion, mad house of a country. I feel sorry for the poor sods buying houses over here, they’ve no idea what they’re getting into.
and don’t use the lawyer i used…he is a crook…!
@Stefanjo, yep so true. You’d be mad to invest in Spain when you can’t even work out what is legal and what isn’t. Every lawyer has a different opinion, mad house of a country. I feel sorry for the poor people buying houses over here, they’ve no idea what they’re getting into.
Fred
Ah, “it has been there since 1988? argument won’t help you without the correct paperwork. It’s amazing how many people think they have the correct paperwork, when in fact they don’t. . . ?” Fred. I don’t often agree with you, but this is exactly the terrible position the poor people in Mijas find themselves in, is it not ? They are trying to explain that the houses were “going to be legalised”, but I just don’t see how that argument is going to stand up. I also worry that the insurance companies will find a loophole in the contracts if they had been unaware that the houses were not legalised.
@PM, yes Mijas is a classic example of this. Spain must have a moratorium on this problem and move forward, otherwise it will drag on for decades. I really think Spain just doesn’t give a care in the world to the damage it does to their reputation.
I don’t think everyone buying in Spain has a bad experience at all. It’s an unfortunate minority that’s exaggerated on this forum. Talk to as many local people as you can before buying or using an estate agent. Ours was okish. It’s not ALL corrupt in Spain! Mainly negative ‘doom’ comments by the usual few on this website… that will be no doubt be on after this post…
I’m with you on some of this Roger. Although it took us 14 years to get an occupation licence this was because of the bankrupt builder over developing and not complying with the approvals he had been given – not the fault of the authorities. We are very lucky in Mijas to have such a helpful Extrageneros department with full access to the planning office for advice. All bent over backwards within certain parameters to finalise the situation despite tremendous workloads
@Roger, don’t shoot the messenger. It is the Olive Press who are covering the story. That unfortunate minority you refer to includes tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of affected people.
Pity about Mijas, it used to be a lovely place back in the 1990’s when I was house-hunting, but is now so overbuilt that Mijas Costa and Pueblo are now like one area. Alhaurin has gone the same way.
We never knew Mijas much before – seems a great place on the costa and pueblo. In this climate it sounds like the easiest thing in the world to say that if all the autonomous regional bodies made house buying secure and safe, things would at least get a bit better. (now for an unrelated comment..) Go to Mijas plaza any Weds at noon for a GREAT free flamenco show!
…the main plaza up in the pueblo that is. Enjoy Spain IF you can people!! that’s what it’s all about yeh? good luck!
But don’t expect the tasters Malaga wine that used to make the flamenco more palatable
“that’s what it’s all about yeh”
What it should ‘all be about’ is that in a supposedley first world EU country, people should be able to purchase houses that are legal and properly documented from the outset, without fear of retrospective illegalities being declared. This is what proper civilised countries do. Even if a minority are affected, why should they be affected at all if they have done everything by the book and still find action taken against them i.e. the people of SOHA and AUAN for example.