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Castellón set for ‘Ryanair effect’ property boom

As the eastern Spanish city of Castellón is poised to become the latest travel hotspot in Spain thanks to new Ryanair routes to its "ghost airport", The Local takes a look at some of the best properties the city has to offer.

Published: 7 April 2015 11:30 CEST

The picturesque Spanish province of Castellón was poised to welcome hordes of tourists when the city’s airport opened in 2011, but with no commercial flights, it stood empty for years, a symbol of Spain’s wasteful building spree in the run up to the 2008 financial crisis.

Now, Irish budget airline Ryanair has announced new routes between Castellón and the UK, finally opening up the quaint Spanish city to British tourists, who are already making enquiries into properties in the area, according to Martin Dell, Director of Kyero.com which lists over 175,000 Spanish properties from 2,500 estate agents.

GALLERY: Top Ten things to do in Castellón

"Castellon is one of Valencia's most interesting cities and largely unknown up until now. The opening of the Castellon airport is likely to see a localised property boom, with prices rising and international interest in the area really taking off,” said Dell.

"As well as the city of Castellon itself, nearby Peniscola, Vinaros and San Jorge also look set to benefit from Spain's ghost airport finally gearing up to receive the international jets for which it was built."

Kyero's buyer enquiries certainly support the idea and reveal precisely what it is buyers are looking for in Castellón. Interestingly, it is the French who seem most interested in Castellon at this early stage in its entrance onto the global stage. Enquiries from French buyers account for 48 percent of the total, followed by English buyers at 30 percent.

When it comes to property type, homes in the €50k-€100k price range attract some 36 percent of enquiries, followed by homes under €50k (with 30 percent of enquiries). 61 percent of buyers are looking for apartments and 39 percent want three bedrooms, closely followed by 34 percent wanting two bedrooms.

Mark Stucklin, head of Spanish Property Insight, a property information site explains why the Costa Azahar is one of the most interesting property markets in Spain at the moment.
 
"Of all coastal areas, the province of Castellón, home to the Costa Azahar, has taken the biggest hit to its housing market, largely because it was so reliant on Spanish demand," he explains.
 
"Peak to present, asking prices are down almost 50 percent and still falling, according to the Idealista database, whilst in Ibiza, in contrast, house prices are down just 4 percent and now rising."
 
 
Stucklin believes Castellon may suit buyers looking for a taste of authentic Spain at a bargain price.
 
"The Costa Azahar is now one of the cheapest places on the coast to buy a holiday-home, and still is one of the few places that can be described as the "real Spain", which many holiday-makers value," he told The Local.
 
But he warns that the market is not about to change overnight.
 
"The problem is, the Costa Azahar isn't really on the radar for foreign buyers. The new airport with Ryanair flights will help, but it will take a long time to build up foreign demand and an effective sales channel. I fear the Costa Azahar will remain a bargain for some time to come," said Stucklin.
 
The rise of Castellón is certainly bound to pique the interest of property investors looking for Spain's hottest investment location in 2015. Many will want to act quickly, before Castellón is 'discovered' by too many more people.

The province recently hit headlines when a house worth €90,000 ($99,256) was won with a €10 lottery ticket. 

Castellón's best property buys

Rustic country house

This traditional country house with three bedrooms and generous plot of land, just 24km from the coast, costs just €160,000 ($174,000). 

Photo courtesy of Albert-Villas Sl/Kyero.com

Modern penthouse with pool

This duplex penthouse, located in Peniscola, on the Costa del Azahar, has incredible sea views as well as three bedrooms and two bathrooms. It could be yours for €199,950. 

Photo courtesy of Carobtree/Kyero.com

Golf course apartment 

This two bedroom apartment is located on the pretty Golf course panorama in San Jordi. The apartment complex boasts a communal garden and two pools and the apartment is on the market for €68,000. 

Photo: Inmobiliaria IK-Consulta/Kyero.com

Beach front apartment

This one bedroom, one bathroom apartment, along Peniscola's beach front, boasts incredible sea views for a very reasonable €85,000. 

Photo: Fincas Beltrán/Kyero.com

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PROPERTY

Q&A: What to do if you buy a property built illegally in Spain

Buying an illegally built property in Spain is fairly common but can have several consequences down the line. Here's what you need to know, how to make it legal, whether you can sell it, and the benefits of doing so.

Published: 25 April 2024 09:35 CEST
Q&A: What to do if you buy a property built illegally in Spain

Unfortunately, over the years, many properties have been built illegally in Spain, not adhering to local rules and regulations. Foreigners who don’t know the legislation can easily fall into the trap of buying one of these properties, only to find out later down the line.

Maybe it’s when they come to sell or perhaps it’s when they want to do works or improvements on the property.

There are several reasons a home could have been built illegally in Spain. Firstly, it could have been built on the wrong type of land. This is it could have been built on suelo rústico, rural land where residential properties are prohibited, also called no urbanizable. 

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It could have also been built too near the coast. This is down to the Ley de Costas or Coastal Law, which was brought into force in December 1989 in order to protect the costas from overdevelopment and high rises spoiling the landscape. 

The law defines different areas of the beach and dictates which is public land, owned by the state and which parts can be owned privately and built on.

If you buy or own a house in one of these non-buildable zones, there are many problems you could face down the line, often sooner rather than later. This is because there are several rules you have to abide by concerning works, reforms and extensions. In some cases, they may not be allowed at all and everything must be approved first by the local government by providing a detailed project.

Because of coastal erosion, this issue is getting worse as some shoreside homes that were once built outside of these areas are finding that they’re now illegal.

READ ALSO: 

The house may have also had extensions made to it that were built without a license, meaning that the extra parts are illegal.

Q: How do I know if my home is legal or not?

A: Unfortunately it can be difficult to know if your property is legal or not. You could have bought and signed for it with a notary and it could be inscribed on the Property Registry, but this still doesn’t mean it was built to the correct specification and on the right land.

The only way to truly tell is to find out if your home ever had a Licencia de Primera Ocupación or First Occupation license, also referred to as a Cédula de Habitabilidad or Certificate of Habitability. This means that according to the authorities, it is suitable to live in and has the correct licenses.

READ ALSO: How to get Spain’s certificate of liveability for properties

Q: What happens if my property doesn’t have a habitability certificate?

A: If your property has never had a Certificate of Habitability, you must regularise the legal situation. First you’ll need to start a legalisation file (expediente de legalización) and contact the town hall. Depending on the seriousness of the case (ie. where exactly it was built, if there’s any structural danger, whether the entire property is illegal or just an extension) the cost of making an illegal property legal can be considerable. As such, each case must be studied individually with the help of an expert to determine whether it is even feasible or worth the investment.

The next step is to bring in an architect and check whether the property complies with all the building regulations. If it does, you simply need present the expediente de legalización to your local town hall, who will confirm whether or not the property adheres to building regulations and can be made legal.

If it doesn’t, you’ll need to consider whether it will comply with the regulations after some renovations. If that’s the case, you’ll need to draw up a renovations project document (proyecto de reforma) outlining the proposed changes and how they will adhere to building regulations. It must be presented to the town hall along with your expediente de legalización.

According to law firm Acal, the legalisation process can be broken down into steps as follows:

  • Contact the town hall.
  • Begin with the expediente de legalización when the town hall confirm whether or not the property can be made legal.
  • Pay the corresponding fees and taxes (in this case it will be IBI) depending on your municipality and region.
  • If you need to make renovations, obtain the proyecto de reforma and hire an architect.
  • Obtain a building permit from the town hall.
  • Once completed, register the property in the Land Registry.

READ ALSO: What is Spain’s IBI tax and how do I pay it?

Q: Do I really need to make my property legal?

A: Yes, because it will benefit you in the long run. It doesn’t matter what the previous owner told you when you were originally buying the property, owning a property that isn’t fully legal (or legal at all) can create problems and even lead to fines worth up to 20 percent of the property’s value in extreme cases.

By going through the legalisation process and making the relevant renovations, if necessary, you gain a legal property for all purposes and with all the benefits that entails.

You will not have problems setting up, paying, or cancelling electricity, water or gas utility services. You won’t have to undertake reforms and renovation work unofficially, avoiding the eyes of the authorities. Instead you’ll be able to register your property in the Land Registry, which will make things much easier when you decide to sell it or pass it on.

In terms of selling it, perhaps that is the biggest benefit of legalising your illegal property: by registering it properly, you will be able to benefit from its full value when selling it. When a property is illegal, the appraised value will probably be no more than 40-45 percent of its real value at best.

The renovations needed to get your property in shape to meet the building regulations could be costly, but will they cost you half of the total value of your property? 

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