Caution Advised For Spanish Buyers
Brussels -- Monday 23 May 2011
My Conservative colleagues and I were alarmed when it was announced that Spain's Development Minister Jose Blanco was launching a campaign to encourage British people to invest in Spanish property. Either he has his head in the sand or he is incredibly insensitive.
Mr Blanco's Europe-wide campaign is aimed at promoting the 'transparency' of Spain's housing market and the 'soundness' of its property legislation. However, the Ministry is unlikely to highlight the thousands of British families that have invested in homes in Spain, only to have those properties seized by the state because of retrospectively applied planning laws, often resulting in the owners being forced to pay substantial sums for demolition or to rent the land that they have already bought.
As Conservative MEP for Yorkshire & the Humber, I have been contacted by many of my constituents with regard to this issue. They highlight the lack of common sense and information in the Spanish housing market, and the inflexibility of the Spanish regional authorities. The European Parliament's Petitions Committee has heard from dozens of victims, and in 2009 the Parliament passed a report calling on the Spanish authorities to rethink their laws. To date, these have been ignored.
Over the years I have heard heart-breaking stories from Yorkshire people who invested their savings into a holiday or retirement home in Spain, only to lose everything. Spain's planning 'laws' are unfair and I would warn people who are thinking of investing to proceed with the utmost caution. I would urge them to seek sound professional advise before they commit. This means getting a second opinion or speaking to people who have already bought properties in the area. Do not get taken in by Spanish property sellers and never give in to pressure to buy.
I can assure you that Conservative MEPs will continue to campaign for Spain to bring its planning laws into the 21st century.
