What's the difference between urban and rustic?

It is important to understand the differences in land types here in the Valencia region. There are basically 2 property or land types, both of which have varying sub types (with more specific conditions).

The first is urban land and this is for building upon and can be residential or industrial. Land must have the necessary urban classification and infrastructure to be considered urban and in the case of low-density urbanization (Villas etc…) it must have roads, pavements, street lighting, mains sewerage, mains electricity and mains drinking water.

Then there is rustic land, normally this is agricultural, but can have other uses such as keeping livestock etc…. This type of land is not for building residential property.

That said, under certain conditions it is possible to obtain permission to build a house in the countryside. One of the main requirements is that the plot size be in excess of 10,000m2, along with correct sewerage treatment. Houses meeting the requirements to have been built in the countryside account for a very, very small percentage of all of those that exist in the countryside. Nearly all houses on less than 10.000m2 of rustic land will have started their life without planning permission.

How can this be?

Like other Latin countries, Spain has a concept called “prescripción,” which is similar to the statute of limitations in British terms. Essentially, if authorities in Spain take no action, nearly any infraction expires after a set period (even serious criminal offenses like murder, which expires after 20 years). As time passes, the administration loses the right to act against houses built without planning permission. This, combined with the fact that planning permission is managed locally and has traditionally lacked adequate funding and enforcement, has resulted in numerous properties originally built without permission that authorities can no longer act against and must tolerate.

For urban infractions on rustic land, the current law (LOTUP 1/2019) stipulates that infractions committed on rustic land after January 2019 will never expire. Under the previous law (LOTUP 4/2014), introduced in 2014, these infractions expired 15 years after they were committed. Prior to that, under LUV 16/2005, they expired after just 4 years. Once the prescribed period has passed, a house built without permission is tolerated by the administration and can be registered in the land registry.

To register any house at the land registry, one must demonstrate that same was built with planning permission or alternatively that it has existed long enough for the applicable statute of limitations to apply, and that there is no urban infraction procedure open against it.

Properties built in urban land with permission can have a habitation license, and rustic properties built without permission, although registered and tolerated, cannot. The principle function of a habitation license is to connect services (water and electricity). It is also true that a habitation license is required to register the property for holiday rentals, so no habitation license means no holiday rental (legally at least).

If you want a fully legal house which has been built with planning permission and qualifies for a habitation license, then you will need to limit your search to urban areas or look for properties in the countryside with plots of at least 10,000m2. An easy way to identify urban properties, is by their urban infrastructure, they must have mains electricity, mains water, mains sewerage, pavements and street lighting. Obviously, sheer size will help you to identify properties situated on plots of over 10.000m2 of land.

Pros:
Fully legal
Habitation license
Urban infrastructure
Can increase build size / extend
Probably compatible with tourist rental

Cons:
More expensive
Rarely in idyllic country locations
Small plots

If you want a house in the countryside with no real issues irrespective of how it started life, a safe bet would be to only look at those which were built before 2010 and which already have water and electricity connected.

Pros:
More reasonably priced
In idyllic locations (sometimes locations unachievable today)
Larger plots
Can keep animals
Can be used for things not permitted in urban areas

Cons:
No habitation license
Lack of infrastructure
Tolerated but legally ambiguous
Cannot increase build size
Probably not compatible with tourist rental

Important Changes to the LOTUP Law and Rustic Properties Going Forward

The Minimización de Impacto Territorial (MIT) represents significant modifications to the Valencia LOTUP law, first enacted in 2014 and consolidated in 2019. This legislation aimed to normalize rustic properties constructed without planning permission, granting them legal status akin to those built with the proper permits. However, a critical aspect of this modification has rendered it largely ineffective for individual property owners.

Under the MIT, properties could gain legality and obtain habitation licenses by adhering to specific regulations, particularly concerning environmental impact, such as improvements to septic systems. However, the stipulation that has hindered individual property legalization is that this process can only commence when there are fewer than three houses per hectare. If the density exceeds three houses (as is the case for most rustic properties), the legalization must follow a collective process known as Procedimiento Colectivo para la Regularización de Viviendas y de Minimización de Impacto Territorial (PEMIT).

This collective approach imposes additional constraints and requires agreement from all affected parties. Because many rustic properties are second homes, often built or purchased as affordable countryside options, many owners resist bearing the costs of compliance, thereby obstructing those who wish to legalize their properties. Although the MIT offers a long-overdue pathway to full legalization for properties built without the necessary permits and licenses, currently, only a limited number of properties can be legalized individually, while collective legalization remains impractical. We hope that future amendments to the law will enable the regularization of many more individual properties.

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