Buying a Finca or Country House on the Costa Blanca

Fincas and country houses in the Jalón valley, Llíber, Benissa, Pedreguer and inland Teulada are some of the most sought-after homes on the Costa Blanca, and they need the most careful legal work.

Rustic land has its own rules: what can be built, what has been built, where the water comes from and how you reach the house. We act only for the buyer, and we check all of it before you commit.

The areaWhere we work inland

• Jalón (Xaló) and LlíberRestored fincas and new country houses among vineyards and almond terraces.
• BenissaLarge plots in the hills behind the coast.
• PedreguerCountry houses a short drive from Dénia and Jávea.
• Inland TeuladaFincas away from the coast, many of them older houses extended over the years.

From our Jávea office and our associated office in Dénia we cover the whole area.

Legal due diligenceWhat we check before you sign

This is our work as lawyers: documents, registries and public administrations, before you commit to anything.

• What is built, and what is legalWe compare the Land Registry, the Cadastre and the building licences with the house you have visited: main house, pool, guest casita, garage, porches. On rustic land in the Valencian Region, the idea that after enough years nobody can touch it does not work the way many buyers expect. Whether a building is exposed depends on when it was finished and how the land is classified. We tell you before you sign.
• WaterMany fincas depend on a well or on an irrigation community. A well needs authorisation or registration with the Júcar River Basin Authority, and irrigation rights go with membership of the local irrigation community. We ask for the paperwork and tell you what is in order and what is not.
• Septic tankMost fincas have no mains sewage, and the discharge from a septic tank also needs authorisation. We check whether it has one.
• AccessSome houses are reached by a track across a neighbour’s land. If the right of way is not in the deeds, we get it formalised before completion.
• The neighbours’ right to buyWhen a rustic plot is one hectare or smaller, the owners of adjoining rustic land may have a legal right to buy it on the same terms, within nine days of the sale being registered or of their learning of it. We check whether this applies and deal with it before you pay.
• Who is sellingA company, several heirs, an unfinished inheritance, a spouse or a power of attorney: we make sure whoever signs can sell the whole property.
• Debts and chargesMortgages, embargoes, unpaid local taxes and anything else registered against the land.

Technical inspectionWhat we advise you to have an architect check

We always advise an inspection by an architect that you choose and appoint yourself. Boundaries and measurements, the condition of the buildings, the habitation certificate and the energy certificate are technical matters for an architect, not for a lawyer. If you do not have one, we can give you the contact of Sergio Tomás Arquitectos in Jávea.

ExamplesWhat this looks like in practice

Situations of the kind we deal with regularly, described in general terms.

1. A restored finca in the Jalón valley, around €1.6 million. The house was in the deeds; the pool and the guest casita were not. We established what could be recorded and made it a condition of completion.
2. A country house in Llíber on a plot of under one hectare, around €1.2 million. It bordered two rustic plots, so the neighbours’ right to buy had to be dealt with before the buyers paid.
3. A finca in the Benissa hills with its own well, around €2.4 million. There was no authorisation for the well on file. The buyers knew exactly where they stood before agreeing the timetable.
4. A country house near Pedreguer, around €1.5 million, reached by a track across the neighbouring finca. The right of way was not in the deeds, and the neighbour granted it before a notary before completion.
5. An older house in inland Teulada, extended over the years, around €1.9 million. The deeds described a smaller house than the one for sale, and part of the plot was registered to a relative of the seller. The seller put both in order before completion.

They guided me expertly through a property purchase, showing deep knowledge of Spanish law, attention to detail, and clear communication throughout. Reliable, efficient, and trustworthy.★★★★★Lisa Damen · Google review

How we work

Most of our clients are British and European expats, many of them buying from abroad. We act only for you, not for the seller. The same lawyer follows your purchase from the first call to the keys, in English. We reply within 24 hours.

For a general overview of rustic land anywhere in Spain, see our guide Buying a rustic or rural property in Spain; for the purchase process step by step, our Jávea property lawyers page.

The lawyers who will handle your purchase

José Manuel Tomas

Conveyancing, Inheritance and Donations · Admitted to the Valencia Bar in 1992 (no. 6407) · Alicante Bar no. 9382

José Rico

Marital and Family Law · Valencia Bar no. 12075

Mariano Ortuño

Civil Law · Valencia Bar no. 6041

Manuel Lopez de Andujar

Inheritance, Conveyancing and Contract Law · Valencia Bar no. 7773

Juan Poch

Conveyancing, Inheritance and Matrimonial Law · Alicante Bar no. 3607

Ruben Bolufer Martinez – Junior Lawyer

Civil and Insurance

María Salvá

Inheritance, Conveyancing and Civil Law – Dénia · Alicante Bar no. 3699

Antonio Rodríguez de Sola

Inheritance, Conveyancing and Civil Law – Dénia · Alicante Bar no. 3374

Disclaimer. The information on this page is general in nature and does not constitute legal advice. Every property and every transaction is different, and the applicable rules may change. No decision should be taken on the basis of this page alone without obtaining advice on your specific case. Tomas Ballestero Lawyers accepts no liability for actions taken in reliance on this general information.