Tiny homes, as well as other alternative properties that cost less than conventional homes, are trending around the world.

This is true of Spain to, where a prefab industry is emerging due to their relatively affordable costs and short installation times.

Many of these companies also offer forms of financing and, on top of that they can be customisable, sustainable and offer the flexibility to be transported and installed in different locations (although the latter option depends on whether they are mobile or fixed homes, depending on the design).

Pre-fabricated homes are called casas modulares in Spanish (usually built with wood, concrete and steel), whereas homes made from shipping containers are dubbed casas contenedor. 

Where can I build a container home in Spain?

Put simply, to build a prefab or container home in Spain, you need to do it on ‘urban land’.

In Spain land is distributed into three categories: urbano, urbanizable and rústico.

Urbano land has official municipal accreditation for residential properties to be built on it, urbanizable is theoretically meant for residential purposes but needs accreditation and often isn’t connected to the water, sewage or electricity grid yet, and rústico is rural land where residential properties cannot be built, also called no urbanizable.

What does land need to have to be considered ‘urbano’?

According to Idealista, Spain’s leading property website: “This is land included in the urban plan of a city or municipality and which has the permits and characteristics that mean you can build on it.

These plots of land therefore have all the necessary services, and to this end, they must have a water supply and drainage network, electricity supply and road access. There are exceptions where building on rural land is permitted, but they are rare and have many limitations of use and size.”

Even if it’s urbano land, you should carefully pick the right plot, with factors such as its location, how flat the terrain is and how easy it is to access all to be kept in mind (it’s advisable to hire an architect with experience with casas modulares to give you the thumbs-up).

You’ll also need to know the specific urban planning rules of the plot you’ve got your eye on. Each municipality in Spain has its own General Urban Development Plan which you can request from the local council and find out.

It’s likely that they’ll ask you to provide a topographic study (estudio topografíco) and geotechnical study (estudio geotécnico), the former costing between €250 and €400 and the latter around €750, both of which assess the viability of the project.

If you’re looking to build a normal house on rural land in Spain, you’ll need to read The Local’s guide below.

READ ALSO: EXCLUSIVE: Where can you build on rural (rústico) land in Spain?

Is a building permit necessary for a prefab house in Spain?

You’ll need planning permission. Idealista estimates that this licence for planning permission costs between 0.5-2 percent of the final cost of the property once completed.

READ ALSO: Do I need planning permission and how do I apply for it?

Do I need to register my prefab container home?

Like any other sort of property, prefab and container houses needed to be registered in Spain’s land registry.

Do I need a certificate for it?

Nothing specific. As with any new build in Spain, whether it’s prefab or a regular house, you still need to get a certificate of habitability (“Cédula de habitabilidad” in Spanish) which basically proves it’s fit for residential use.

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

Where can I buy a prefab house in Spain?

If you don’t fancy starting from scratch and building your own container home (something you’ll need a lot of time and know-how to do) you can buy one pretty easily.

There’s actually a pretty burgeoning market in Spain, whether it be for permanent residence prefabs or holiday homes.

Some of the most established companies include House-Matic, which has been in the sector for 25 years.

Inhaus is also widely recognised as one of the best manufacturers of prefab houses in Spain. It stands out in the market for making custom-made prefab concrete houses and its offering of different architectural styles.

Casas Cube is another company with a long record in the industry, and it specialises in offering more high quality, designer homes.

Casas Cube has built and installed over 440 prefabs in Spain. Its average construction time is six months, and it offers a transport and installation service, so it’s probably a good one to go for if you want to buy your prefab and let the professionals handle the rest.

For a fuller list and ranking of companies that sell and install prefab houses in Spain, you can find one here.

You can also just google casas modulares or casas contenedor and then the name of your city or region to see if there are any businesses specialising in pre-fab homes in your area.

What should I look for in a company?

There are a few things to consider. Think about their industry experience, the sorts of pre-fabs they make and if they can do what you want.
Obviously, as with anything you’ll need to think about price and budget. Is installation included in the price or is it extra? How much more expensive would customisation make it?

But perhaps most importantly, because the company will need to transport the materials, choosing a company closer to you (within a few hundred km, say) or where you plan to build the property, at least, means you’ll save on those costs.

An added bonus of this is that local companies will be familiar with local building regulations, which can change depending on where in Spain you are.

How much do they cost?

Again, like any product this depends. Obviously you can build your own from scratch but that requires a lot of work and know-how, so in terms of buying a prefab in Spain, there’s a range of price profiles available.

They can start as low as €20-25,000 for basic models and run north of €125,000 for larger, more luxurious prefabs, depending on what you want.

You should also factor in taxes such as the Tax on Constructions, Installations and Works (ICIO) which is around 4 percent of the final cost of the project, as well as 10 percent VAT and 1.5 percent Stamp Duty.

READ ALSO: How you can now build your dream home on rural land in Spain’s Andalusia

Anything else I should know?

There’s a famous YouTube channel called Fabrica Tu Sueño (Build Your Dream) created by a young Spaniard who has successfully built his own container home from scratch in Tenerife.

Most of his videos are subtitled in English, you it will no doubt come in handy for anyone else embarking on the same ‘build your own tiny home’ mission in Spain.