Did you ever think about the use of your property before buying? Buying a property which is located in a touristic area can be affected in different ways than a property which is located in an area which is classified as residential. The idea behind this is that a touristic area is a similar classification as for example an industrial area. However, in the case of an industrial area it doesn´t seem very appealing to build a house there or even buy some warehouse for living, but in the tourist area of Gran Canaria it had been more and more popular that private owners acquire apartments or bungalows which are designed and respond to different requirements such as for tourists. Living in a tourist city with its lazy lifestyle is a very appealing idea right?
While it´s one thing to adapt and compromise lifestyle to these properties and it´s smaller dimensions of the rooms and also its environment regarding e.g. missing playgrounds for children, social services, public schools, sanitary facilities etc.., the housings have smaller spaces and less storage than a residential property which urban regulations require to be designed in a different style, the other aspect is that, legally these properties are also affected by Urban Planning Regulations of the different administrations directly.
And there has been quite a battle going on between different administrations and courts in the recent years. Back in 2013 when the number of tourists visiting the Canary Islands was getting stronger and stronger, for example the Canarian Government tried to recover the tourist areas during a longtime process exclusively for tourist by a special tourist law 2013/2. The idea was that the municipalities should take care that the residents should start to move step by step back to the residential areas and the town halls shouldn´t accept registration of new citizens. However, this intend failed as courts ruled that private house owners should be able to use their properties in a free way in accordance to European and Spanish law.
As at the moment there doesn´t seem to be an obvious legal difference concerning a property located in a touristic area and regarding the classification of the area there is quite a difference if you buy a property in an apartment or bungalow compound in the touristic area regarding the question if the compound is in residential or touristic use, especially if you´re planning to rent out your property through a professional touristic renting platform you´re not allowed to make competition for example to a tour operator who is operating more than 50%+ units within this compound and hence you can´t legalize your property for private touristic renting but rather would have to find an agreement with the tour operator who is already in charge there. So, please get informed about the current legal situation before buying a property.
