More Spanish Coastal Properties Under Threat.
The ownership of a property legally built, with appropriate permissions, thirty eight years ago has been seized by the Valencian authorities. The house, built on an urbanisation, is situated in El Saler and was inherited by a couple, Cliff and Marie Carter, who come from Pickering in North Yorshire. They were relying on the property’s capital value, around 500,000 Euros as a pension fund.
The ownership has been seized via the 1988 Ley de Costas, (Coastal Law), which is enshrined under the Spanish Constitution and cannot be legally challenged. As the house was built in 1970 the law is being retrospectively applied. The enactment of the law has been poorly enforced by local authorities and thousands of properties, owned by Spanish and foreign nationals alike, are now under threat.
An environment ministry spokesman has denied that mass demolitions were planned but said owners of properties on public land could be “relocated”. He added: “We are not operating the law retrospectively. Concessions have been given to owners of properties which were built on land which is now public land. They can appeal if they want.”
