Landgrab

Subject: Landgrab in the Province of Valencia

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User Profile vbtudor Posts 11 Level New Member		Posted Sat Oct 2004 12:29:52 Hi there For those of you who haven’t been keeping an eye on developments - there have been some. The Spanish government, at the request of Jack Straw and at the demand of 17 member states of the EU, have initiated investigations into the Land Grab abuses. The response by the Valencian government was one of disbelief that the Spanish Government should meddle in their affairs (it is well documented that they don’t see eye to eye - being politically opposed as they are.) So movements are afoot. If anyone would like further information on LRAU i have written a guide to LRAU the land grab law, what it is and how it affects you, with advice on what to do if you are affected or about to be, and how you can avoid it- Whilst not comprehensive it gives the basic information required to be better informed (and less fearful). Anyone who wants a copy can get one by either registering as a member on our website (www.spanishproperty-direct.com - select members area) or by sending me an email to vbtudor@spanishproperty-direct.com. There are also other guides online such as buying process in Spain and buying for investment (well worth a read) If anyone wants any advice or information on this subject please feel free to get in touch and I will answer to the best of my knowledge or point you to someone who can help. One final point - negotiations are progressing between a major insurer and the AUN to provide insurance cover against LRAU. Subscribe as a member and we can keep you updated via our informative newsletter (which is free of any advertising or property for sale) Otherwise good luck and lets hope that LRAU soon becomes history Regards and best wishes Vince Barnes www.spanishproperty-direct.com Spanish property at Spanish prices
User Profile vbtudor Posts 11 Level New Member		Posted Mon Jun 2004 17:17:48 Hi there. I am new to this forum but thought I would drop my tuppence worth. I have lived in Spain now for 18 months and have seen at first hand the effects of Land Grab. The basic premise was that 9as was mentioned earlier) urban developments can take ppace without owners blocking them. However what has since happened is that unscrupulous developers in cahoots with town halls (who benefit in a number of ways) have used the law to force landowners to give their land through expropriation. Basically town halls beneift becuase more residents means more money into the coffers. They also get 10% f the land (depending on the development) for specific Toan hall items such as green areas and parking facilities. Many developers bribe town halls by offering Municipal buildings (such as a hospital in one project in Benidorm where thankfully the mayor has put a block on the development). Finally it is alleged that town hall officials make lots of money direct from the developer - and some mayors are being investigated into these dealings - in one case in Teulada near Moraira the new incoming mayor stopped all new licences and developments and has told his predecessor he will investigate every aspect of the dealings with the developers and bring in the Guardia Civil if necessary. So what is being done about it. Well a recent delegation from the EU came over to Valencia and Alicante and have deemed it a dmanable law which is a breach of human rights and against the Spanish COnstituion (both of which state that property owners have the right to enjoy their property). There are a number of cases already going in frot of the European COurt of Human RIghts and the recent findings by the delegation will only help these. It is likely that the EU will force the Valencia government in time to change the Law. In actual fact the new Law which is replacing it (which is a step in the right direction) called LUV (Ley Urbanisacion de Valencia) is due in October this year (2004). This states that 51% of landowners must agree to the development. Still doesnt go far enough but changes will have to be made. The Valencian fgovernment is facing a raft of protests because now lots of foreigners are protesting the their EU MEP and they in turn are making representations. There is an organisation called Abusosurbano no which is lobbying EU ministers. Even the Valencian Ombudsman states that the law is bad and that the regional government are not listening to his recommendations. But what can you do to protect yourself. 1. Dont buy a house that is not on urbano land. If you still want that Finca then look around you. If you are in the wooly wiles it is unlikely that a developer is goign to want to make an urbanisation - but not mpossible. 2. Carry out full searches of the property and get your solicitor to ask the right questions (they generally wont unless you ask them to) 3. Speak to the town hall - under the new guidelines and LUV law they have to disclose any new plans for an urbanisation. But obviously they dont want to make it too public so you will have to ask them the point directly. 4. Speak to locals who live in the area - although they usually dont know what is happeneing they have a surprisingly good idea of what goes on - and if there is a lot pf buying activity of seemingly valueless plots of orange groves it is highly likely that an urbanisation is planned - so beware. If anyone requires any more information on LRAU or any other aspect of buying a property inSPain please drop me a line at vbtudor@spanishproperty-direct.com and I will send you a recent newsletter I wrote on the subject. Also I have written a guide ot buying in Spain - totally free. Let me know youre interested and I will send it on to you. Otherwise good luck and lets hope that LRAU soon becomes history Regards and best wishes Vince Barnes www.spanishproeprty-direct.com
User Profile Property4Spain Posts 3 Level New Member		Posted Thu Mar 2004 10:54:01 Sorry to post this a second time but I thought it would be useful: There has been a growing backlash from the Spanish and fellow Europeans regarding 'landgrab' or LRAU over the past decade. It started out as a purely Valencia based law but has since been replicated in other regions including Alicante, Murcia and Andalucia. It was originally created to overcome issues with greedy land owners who held large swathes of land up for ransom to the local town halls which meant they were unable to house the local population economically. However since then the application of this law has been comandeered by developers and cash strapped Town halls. There is very little that can be done to provide a safeguard against LRAU. In theory 'Rustica' land is free from Urbanisations but the town halls have the power to redesignate land for urbanisation. You are generally safer if you buy property of newly developed urbanisations, but still you must do your homework and retain seraches and local legal advice before you commit. Those worst affected are the people who bought property with plots of land years ago and have since been affected - it can mean they lose up to 70% of their land and also have to pay for the utility and communications installation of new sites on what was previously their land - ouch! Its is not all bad news - there is an organisation making waves at the European parliament which is opposing the current version of LRAU. Take a look at the section 'Living & Working' on the links page of www.property4spain.com for the LRAU site
User Profile CathyM Posts 1 Level New Member		Posted Fri Mar 2004 22:17:34 We are moving to the Jalon Valley area of Spain Around July/August of this year and are worried about the landgrab situation. Is there any safe way of buying a property? Once the property has been purchased, is there any form of insurance that you can take out against any future landgrab developments? We know of one policy which only covers you for redevelopment plans already in place at the time of the purchase. Any help regarding this situation would be greatly appreciated.
User Profile mikekathrichmond Posts 1 Level New Member		Posted Mon Feb 2004 16:48:36 we are moving to spain soon,and are also worried about the landgrab situation in Valencia. We are looking to move inland,possibly in the Alcoy area,would we be safer here than in coastal areas? Any advice on this subject would be welcome
User Profile bsumme Posts 1 Level New Member		Posted Sat Jan 2004 11:42:46 There was a programme on ITV last night called "Holiday Homes from Hell", one part was about Spain. It appears that in the province of Valencia there is a law called Landgrab which enables developers to take any land they want. You saw people who were to lose most of their land and also have to pay towards the utilities cost for the development. Is the law just for Valencia or all of Spain, if so is there anything you can do to protect yourself??

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