The Irish Independent 04.06

Irish Independent
April 2006

Costa del Sol property scam 'is no threat to Irish owners'

IRISH property experts have moved to reassure investors in the Spanish property market that their homes will not be demolished. Reports had warned that 30,000 properties in Marbella had been illegally constructed and 4,500 of these risked being destroyed as part of a major crackdown on illegal building.
Many of the properties in question were built without licence or breached the terms of the planning permission. However, solicitor Tom McGrath said that holiday home-owners need not worry. " At the moment they're going through the regulations and local authority with a fine tooth comb," he said . "In three months' time the regulations will be tighter than in any other part of Spain. But they are not knocking down buildings." Many of the offending properties were built with the aid of corrupt councillors, developers, lawyers and businessmen. A total of 23 people were arrested after the €1bn property scam was exposed.

Many of the homes were constructed too close to the sea, on public parkland or in the increasingly thin green belt, Mr McGrath said that many developers also failed to apply for licences to build. " Traditionally they had developers come in, buy large plots of land, build apartments and apply for a licence retrospectively," he said. The new rules mean that no new licences are currently being granted.

" If there are any breaches involved here the fines will be levied on the developer," he said, reassuring those who have invested in a home in the sun. However, he said that those who are concerned should contact a Spanish lawyer. He pointed out that many Irish people fail to employ a lawyer when they buy in the sun, leaving them exposed to being ripped off.

A local lawyer can check if the land actually belonged to the developer in the first place, if a licence was granted and if the building adhered to the planning permission which was granted. It is estimated that about 40pc of all Irish foreign property investment is in Spain. Up to 50,000 Irish people are thought to have bought property there, mostly on the Costa del Sol.

Edel Kennedy