In the wake of the financial crisis, as thousands of buyers of all nationalities, across Spain lost small fortunes to bankrupt developers and rogue banks who refused to honour their guarantees As a result the concept of buying new build properties in Spain earned an extremely negative reputation, however, in today's marketplace the standards to which developers must comply buildings that were granted planning permission after they came into force, very few properties that met these new standards were seen until the market started to recover in the mid 2010’s, by this point, in addition to the new building standards, updates were made to the laws governing bank guarantees and deposits made with builders during the build process.

In this chapter I am going to explain the current legislation that exists to govern builders and protect consumers. We will look at the building standards that have to be reached and the structural guarantees that builders must put in place in addition to the financial guarantees that must be offered. I will explain the essential plans and paperwork that you must ask for when viewing a new development and when considering a purchase.

It is important to remember that none of the protections are automatic - regulations are only effective if you ensure that they are being adhered to, and so I will explain the role of your Lawyer and the steps that they will take to ensure that your builder is working in line with their responsibilities. I will then explain the process that will be followed from the moment you put down a reservation deposit to the moment you take possession of keys. 

Finally we will look at the pros and cons of buying a property off plan.