Technical Inspection of Buildings in Spain

Technical Inspection of Buildings in Spanish Royal Decree 8/2011

Obligation, Requirements, Authority, Effectiveness and Justification

On July 2012 came into force the provisions in Article 21 of the Spanish Royal Decree 8/2011. That article refers to the mandatory Technical Inspection of Buildings in Spain.

The Obligation of the ‘ITE’ in Spain

In Spanish, ‘ITE’ is an acronym for ‘Inspección Técnica de Edificios’ (Technical Inspection of Buildings). Spanish Royal Decree 8/2011 stipulates that all buildings whose age exceeds fifty years (unless regional regulations prescribe other age) and whose intended use is preferably residential, must be subject to regular Technical Inspections, provided they are located in the following municipalities or zones:

• municipalities with more than 25,000 inhabitants (unless regional regulations prescribe other standards)
• municipalities where Administrations define specific zones subject to this practice
• municipalities where regional regulations provide the application of this practice, even if they don’t have specific zones defined.

All required buildings should have received their first Technical Inspection before 2015.

‘ITE’ Requirements in Spain

The regular Technical Inspection should be applied depending on the age of the buildings, and should be intended to ensure their good condition. Each Technical Inspection must be able to:

• assess the adequacy of the property to all legally required conditions of safety, health, accessibility and aesthetics
• determine the conservation works necessary to maintain the property in a legally enforceable condition.

Authority for the Regulation of the ‘ITE’ in Spain

The Autonomous Communities should regulate the method, timing and conditions under which the Technical Inspections of Buildings must be carried out. All regulations imposed by municipalities can only be developed within the framework of national and regional standards.

‘ITE’ of Real Estate Complexes

If a Technical Inspection refers to an entire building or a building complex, its effectiveness must be extended to every shop, office, dwelling or unit that belongs to it.

Justification of the Legal Conservation Duty

If a Technical Inspection report states some deficiencies in the building, the report itself will not be able to justify the compliance with the legal duty of conservation. Such justification may only be enforced after the certification of the effective performance of the conservation works required to recover the legally enforceable condition of the building.

Scope of the Valuation Methods in Spain (I)

Scope of the Different Methods for the Valuation of Properties in Spain (I)

R. D. 1020/1993 and R. D. 1492/2011

The primary purpose of the Spanish Royal Decree 1020/1993, about Valuation Rules and Value Frame for Land and Construction, is the determination of the Cadastral Value of urban properties, whose data constitute the Spanish Urban Real Estate Cadastre. Moreover, the Spanish Law 58/2003, about General Taxes, states that the value of the real estate affected by tax obligations can be checked by the Administration using the values ​​established by the Real Estate Cadastre, by applying the multiplier coefficients determined by competent tax authorities, as established by regulation. For all the above, the technical standards of valuation expressed in Royal Decree 1020/1993 apply for the following purposes:

• determination of the Cadastral Value of any urban real estate
• determination of the tax base in the tax about Property Transfer and Documented Legal Acts
• liquidation of the taxable events of the tax about Successions and Donations.

Spanish Royal Decree 1492/2011

The Spanish Royal Decree 1492/2011, about the Valuation Rules of the Spanish Land Act, applies to the valuation of land, facilities, buildings and constructions, and of rights made in connection therewith, whenever the final purpose is one of the following:

• checking the sharing of benefits and burdens, or other operations required by the implementation of the territorial and urban planning in which the valuation delimits the financial content of powers or duties associated with the right to property, in the absence of agreement among all affected subjects
• determination of fair compensations in expropriations, regardless of the purpose and the laws governing the process
• determination of the amount payable to the owner in cases of forced sale or substitution
• determination of the financial guarantee of a Public Administration.

Rules for the Valuation of Properties According ECO/805/2003 (VII)

Valuation Rules According ECO/805/2003 (VII)

General Warnings

According Spanish ECO/805/2003, we find a ‘warning case’ whenever we have doubts about any of the data used in the calculation of the technical values. At a minimum, we should consider the following cases:

• when there is a discrepancy between the physical reality of the property and its description in the Property Registry or the Cadastre, if such discrepancy does not lead to doubt about the identification and do not affect the calculated values
• when the property is not in accordance with the applicable urban planning, unless some conditioning have been stated or it was not possible to verify the system of protection of the architectural heritage
• when the valued property is subject to expropriation or was constructed on the basis of a license or an administrative authorization containing conditions, which if not met, may result in changes to the certified value
• when the valuation has been calculated using different methods than those stated in Spanish Order ECO/805/2003
• when the maximum legal value was calculated in absence of some of the required documents
• when the valuation was calculated in absence of the necessary documents to calculate cash flows
• in rural properties, when the valuation was calculated in absence of the cadastral documentation or the documents describing the operating system
• in the valuation of buildings under construction or rehabilitation for the finished building hypothesis, when the valuation was calculated in absence of a complete set of the Construction Documents already endorsed by the Architects’ Association, or the final certification of the performed work, or the Building Contract, or the Schedule of Construction Costs
• in buildings whose main use is housing, when the valuation was calculated in absence of the document attesting the expedition of the decennial insurance for property damage
• in buildings in horizontal property regime or building elements different than houses or garages, when the valuation was calculated in absence of the statutes of the homeowners, an equivalent document or a Certificate by the community manager, certifying the limitations of use or other circumstances able to affect the value
• when the Cadastral Reference does not exist or can not be known by the means provided in the revised text of the Law on Real Estate Cadastre, or through the Virtual Office of the Cadastre
• in properties located abroad, when the valuation was calculated in the absence of all the documentation that, in accordance with the rules applicable in the country where the property is located, may have some influence on the value of the property.

Rules for the Valuation of Properties According ECO/805/2003 (V)

Valuation Rules According ECO/805/2003 (V)

Statement of the Values. Checks. Land Area. Mortgage Value. Intermediate Valuation.

When valuing a Real Estate in Spain, the values should be stated in a report and, where appropriate, a Certificate of Valuation.

Minimum Checks

The valuation of a property requires to perform all necessary checks to know the characteristics and the actual condition. Among the checks that should be performed, the following ones should always be included:

• physical identification of the property, through its location and visual inspection, checking if its floor area and other characteristics match the description
• identifying all visible servitudes
• conservation status or condition
• occupancy status
• use or exploitation intended for the property
• public protection regime, if it’s about housing
• architectural heritage protection regime
• agreement of the property with all applicable urban planning regulations
• where applicable, availability of right to the valued urban use.

Land Area

In order to calculate the value of a land or a country estate, the area to consider should be checked by the appraiser. If this testing is not feasible, the appraiser should use the lowest value between the Registry Area and the Cadastral Area.

Definition of Mortgage Value (VH)

The Mortgage Value or VH (‘Valor Hipotecario’, in Spanish) is defined as the value of the property as determined by a prudent valuation, taking into account all market conditions, the use at the time of the valuation and any possible alternative uses.

Definition of Intermediate Valuation

The Intermediate Valuation of a construction work is any of the valuations that are issued after the initial valuation and during the construction or rehabilitation process of a building or an element of a building. The Intermediate Valuation reflects the progress of the works and the percentage of work performed, but its issue does not involve the updating of the values ​​contained in the initial valuation.

Rules for the Valuation of Properties According ECO/805/2003 (IV)

Valuation Rules According ECO/805/2003 (IV)

Floor Areas used in the Valuation of a Property

In general, the floor area that must be used in order to calculate the value of a building in Spain is the floor area as checked by the valuer. However, the particular circumstances of a building may require using other floor areas:

• if it's not possible to check the floor area on-site, the area to use will be the lowest between the floor areas considered by the Cadastre and the Property Registry
• if it was possible only to check the Gross Floor Area or the Gross Internal Area without the floor area of the common parts, due to operational difficulties involved in checking all the floor area of the common parts, the area to use will also be the lowest one between the cadastral floor area and registry floor area with common parts, provided that the valuer considers that the proportion between the floor area finally used and the checked one is reasonable
• if the checked floor area of a building exceeds by more than 5 percent to the registry floor area or to the cadastral floor area, the adoption of the checked floor area will require to verify the adequacy to the applicable urban planning regulations
• if the checked floor area of an element of a building exceeds by more than 10 percent to the registry floor area or the cadastral floor area, the adoption of the checked floor area will require to verify the adequacy to the urban planning regulations
• if the building lacks of Statement of New Building entered in the Property Registry, the adoption of the checked floor area will also require to verify the adequacy to the urban planning regulations
• if the floor area of the private outdoor spaces for the exclusive use of the building exceeds by more than 15 percent of the total floor area thereof, the floor area of the outdoor spaces shall be measured separately and valued with a different unit price
• in the valuation of homes subject to public protection, for the purposes of calculating their maximum legal value, the floor area that should be adopted is the one contained in the Certificate of Qualification.

Architect Daniel Trujillano

http://www.arquitectotrujillano.com/valuation/home.html

Valuation Reports for Buildings in Spain

Rules for the Valuation of Properties According ECO/805/2003 (III)

Valuation Rules According ECO/805/2003 (III)

Market Value and Replacement Value. Checked Area and Computable Area. Comparable Properties. Urban Levels.

The Spanish Order ECO/805/2003 defines the Market Value (VM) as the price at which the property could be sold on the date of the valuation. In determining the Market Value is necessary to consider:

• that there is no prior relationship between seller and buyer
• that neither the seller nor the buyer holds any personal or professional interest in the transaction, excluding those associated with the cause of the contract
• that the public offering to the market occurs through a proper marketing strategy and with no inside information
• that the price of the property is consistent with the public offer and reflects a reasonable estimate relating to market conditions existing at the date of the valuation
• that the price does not include any taxes or marketing expenses.

Definition of Replacement Value (VR)

The Replacement Value (VR) can be gross or net. The Gross Replacement Value (VRB) is the sum of all the investment costs required to build, on the date of valuation, another property with the same characteristics (capacity, use, quality, etc.) but using current technology and materials. The Net Replacement Value (VRN) is the result of deducting from VRB the physical and functional depreciation of the property on the date of the valuation.

Checked Area and Computable Area

The Checked Area is the floor area as measured by the valuer. The Computable Area is the floor area used in the valuation.

Comparable Properties

Comparable properties are those that are considered similar to the property that is being valued, or appropriate to apply the homogenization, because of its location, use, type, size, antiquity, condition or other relevant physical characteristic.

The Urban Levels of the Land

For the purposes of the valuation, Spanish Order ECO/805/2003 classifies the land into two levels:

• level II: non-developable land
• level I: developable and developed land.

Architect Daniel Trujillano

http://www.arquitectotrujillano.com/valuation/home.html

Valuation Reports for Properties in Spain

Rules for the Valuation of Properties According ECO/805/2003

Valuation Rules According ECO/805/2003

Spanish Order ECO/805/2003. Purpose, Scope and Principles.

The Order ECO/805/2003 establishes the rules for the calculation of the value of real property in Spanish territory, and for the preparation of reports and certificates for the formalization of the valuation. The purpose of these rules is enhancing the technical and formal quality or the valuation reports, in order to better protect the interests of third parties. The order establishes a single structure with a minimum number of points that the valuer must complete.

Purpose of the Order ECO/805/2003

One of the objectives of the Order ECO/805/2003 is the regulation of the legal regime applicable to the calculation of the value of real estate in Spain, and the preparation of reports and certificates for its formalization.

Scope of the Order ECO/805/2003

The Order ECO/805/2003 applies if the purpose of the valuation is any of the following:

• mortgage warranty of loans that are or will be part of the coverage in mortgage titles
• coverage of the technical provisions of insurance companies
• determining the assets of collective investment real estate entities
• determination of the real estate assets of pension funds.

Valuation Principles

When a valuation company or valuation service acts for any of the purposes that make up the scope of the Order ECO/805/2003, it must fulfill the following principles:

• principle of anticipation: if the property is in economic exploitation, its value is based on the expectations of the income it will likely provide in the future
• principle of purpose: the purpose of the valuation determines the method and the techniques
• principle of highest and best use: if the property is liable to be dedicated to different uses, its value shall be the result of destining it to the best one in economic terms
• principle of probability: if there are several reasonable scenarios, the most likely must be selected
• principle of proportionality: the valuation reports should be developed with appropriate amplitude according to the importance, the use and uniqueness in the market
• principle of caution: if there are several equally likely scenarios, the one which provides lower value must be selected
• substitution principle: the value of a property is equivalent to the value of other similar assets that could replace it
• principle of temporality: the property value varies over time
• transparency principle: each valuation report must contain all the information necessary for easy understanding, and must describe the assumptions and documents used
• principle of residual value: the value attributable to each of the production factors of a property is the difference between the total value and the value that can be attributed to the rest of the factors.

Architect Daniel Trujillano
http://www.arquitectotrujillano.com/valuation/home.html
Valuation Reports for Real Estate in Spain

Buildings Assimilated to the Outside Planning Regime (II)

Properties Assimilated to the Outside Planning Regime (II)

Technical Certificate for Particularized Recognition

The particularized recognition of a building assimilated to the outside planning regime provides a valid document for the definitive hiring of the services provided by the suppliers of electricity, water, gas and telecommunications. It also allows access to the Property Registry for the recognized building, by the inscription with notice about its particularized situation. After obtaining recognition, all repair and maintenance works required by the strict preservation of the safety and health conditions of the building will be authorized.

The Technical Certificate

Normally, the inscription in Title Deeds of buildings performed under the prescription of an urban infraction will require a technical certificate stating about the description and the antiquity of the performed works. However, to obtain the resolution of building assimilated to the outside planning regime, such certificate should contain:

• complete identification of the affected property, indicating the number in the Property Registry (if it's already registered) and geographic location by cadastral reference
• date of completion of the building, properly accredited by any valid evidence document
• the use to which the property is intended
• expert opinion about safety, habitability and health conditions, considering the building use
• expert opinion about the installations, considering the autonomous character, the environmental sustainability and the current regulations, and considering the building use
• if the building lacks of some installation, a description of all necessary works needed for the provision of every basic service required.

In other words, the procedure for the recognition of building assimilated to the outside planning situation requires drafting a set of technical construction documents, and not just a certificate of antiquity.

Architect Daniel Trujillano
http://www.arquitectotrujillano.com/legalization/home.html
Legalization Documents for Buildings in Andalusia