Today I want to inform you of a further action being undertaken by a fellow sufferer, Keith Rule, leader of the Finca Parcs Action Group. He has devised a further petition regarding the problems surrounding bank guarantees. It was launched yesterday on the EyeonSpain website. Unlike the earlier one, this is a very thorough and precise exploration of the issues. Keith is attempting to provide the various leaders of the governments and relevant organisations of both England and Spain with HARD FACTS re the Spanish law (Ley 57/68), through which we are required to work, and the HARD FACTS connected with the miserable circumstances in which many of us have found ourselves.

The petition has been devised as a survey. It asks you to provide these HARD FACTS which will be compiled and presented as a dossier of evidence including formal statistics to the leaders that you will find listed at the head of the petition.

It has taken Keith two years of research, drafting and refining the petition and he has left no stone unturned to get it right and legally correct. I urge you to look at the website http://www.bankguaranteesinspain.com and complete as much of it as you can. Everyone can sign (anonymously if you wish – the only requirement is that you have an e-mail address) as it caters for all those who have had, or are having, to deal with a bank guarantee issue in their attempt to purchase an off-plan property. It allows for both winners and losers to sign and it also allows supporters of the spirit of the petition to sign, too.

The more HARD FACTS you can provide the stronger the HARD EVIDENCE.

Please get behind Keith and help to make this petition one that cannot be ignored.

Thank you.
Ruth Genda

Source: Press release

HOSTAGES OF SPANISH PROPERTY SCANDALS

A Petition to the British Prime Minister on behalf of British people who are victims of the well-publicized Spanish property scandals and abuses, will be presented in February 2009.  Petitioners ask Mr Brown to address the Spanish Prime Minister directly and voice his disdain for these abuses. Petitioners also ask the PM to support a call to the EU for Sanctions on the Kingdom of Spain until these abuses are stopped and justice is delivered. They also ask Mr Brown to motion an investigation of British REAs & those using British bases, who have continued to sell illegal properties in Spain.
This Petition will also be presented to the European Parliament, pressing for EU intervention.
An alleged triangle of corruption involving developers, real estate agents, and in particular lawyers who have not given their clients the correct legal representation, is highlighted in the Petition, which contains a dossier of supportive facts.

Many have purchased property in Spain without being protected by a Bank Guarantee, the Law in Spain since 1968. Those who do have this ‘protection’ find that Banks in Spain are not honouring these legally-binding Guarantees, which leaves them with no choice but to take lengthy and expensive litigation in an attempt to get their money back. Many Petitioners are eager to sue their original lawyers for collusion and negligence, but cannot find a lawyer in Spain who will enable this action.
Thousands of illegal properties in Spain are now being brought into new Town Plans (PGOUs). Judges are ruling in favour of some developers, leaving the off-plan purchaser who refused to complete on an illegal property years ago without redress and facing many thousands of Euros in legal fees, including those of the developer. Some of these developers have previously been charged with bribary involving back-handed payments to Town Hall officials, to build on greenbelt or ‘rustic’ land.

To date, 75% of Petitioners have paid deposits totalling 13.2 Million Euros for properties that are now classified as illegal, or not even built many years later. 24% of Petitioners have discovered that they have completed on illegal properties. These propeties cannot be re-sold and face possible demolition. For these owners, their homes are now worthless, as it is illegal to live in a property in Spain without a Habitation Licence.

Suzanne Wyatt, compiler of this Petition, says ” The figures quoted are just the very tip of the iceberg. Many of us feel like powerless hostages, while criminal actions are being legalized. Developers who have built illegally have repeatedly postponed court cases, and been allowed to Appeal on Judgements against them, when they have clearly broken their own Spanish Laws. They are being given far too much lenience by the Spanish Judicial system, deliberately causing as long a delay as possible within the courts, until they are eventually granted Habitation Licences for said properties, or enter Administration.  EU Laws have undoubtedly been breached, and we believe that EU Sanctions are now the only way to force the Kingdom of Spain to clear up this mess, deliver justice, and restore the well-known British love and respect for Spain and her people”.

Supportive signatures and personal experiences are encouraged via a dedicated website: www.spanishpropertyscandalpetition.co.uk

It has been 2 years now since the Marbella council was suspended by the Spanish government. This was due to the high level of corruption in the town hall which mainly involved receiving bribes to reclassify land for building, which instead should have been green zones or for the public good.

It is worth noting that the current Marbella PGOU plan has not been finalized, so there still might be some changes. Although once it is approved, whether in its current form or modified we should see an increase in investment in Marbella as there needs to be improvements made in the infrastructure.

Interestly enough one of the benefits of current halt on all contruction, etc… is that recently Marbella property has seen an increase in the average selling prices. This is of course after the previous drop that it suffered.

Regards
Andrew Bellés

It appears that under the Mijas PGOU plan (the urban plan) quite a few projects have been approved that should see the coastal area develop in a way that will enhance the quality of life for people living and working in the area.

It appears that La Cala is going to benefit from having a marina built at some point in the future. And it appears that currently on the Costa del Sol demand far outstrips supply.
This in combination with the train line which will continue on from Fuengirola through Las Lagunas and La Cala on its way to Marbella should help owners of properties in the area see the value pf said property increase.

For those not familiar with the area, the municipality of Mijas is divided into several areas. You have the white-washed Mijas Pueblo (village) located in the mountains, Mijas Costa, which is adjacent to Fuengirola, the small village of La Cala de Mijas and Las Lagunas, a commercial/residential area to the north of Fuengirola.

There are also a range of golf course in the area, 7 I believe, which seem to bring down a lot of winter golfers every year. If demand is anything to go by, they seem to be quite good. La Cala golf even has a David Leadbetter Academy.

Regards
Andrew Bellés