The finca is the dream — and the property type with the most expensive mistakes. Not because fincas are bad, but because different rules apply on rústico land than in town. Know them, and you buy well.
Almost all fincas sit on suelo rústico — rural, non-urbanised land. Building there is only permitted with restrictions: a new dwelling needs a minimum plot size (by municipality and zone, often 14,000 m² and more), extensions are limited, in protected zones (ANEI, ARIP) practically excluded. An existing house may remain — but only if it was built legally or enjoys grandfathered status.
Is everything standing permitted? The house, the extension, the garage, the pergola, the pool? Thousands of unpermitted structures stand in Mallorca; municipalities now pursue violations more consistently than before, with fines and in extreme cases demolition. Have checked: building permits (licencias), cadastre match, cédula de habitabilidad, completion certificate (final de obra), for older buildings the limitation period for building offences (prescripción) — which does not apply in protected zones. Whatever isn't legal belongs in the price or is a deal-breaker.
Fincas are rarely on the mains. Typical: own well (pozo) — which needs a registered water right and whose yield and salt content (coastal strip!) should be tested —, a cistern (aljibe) for rainwater and delivery by tanker, which is completely normal in the south-east. Clarify: who delivers, what a tank costs, how long the cistern lasts in August.
A grid connection is not a given — many fincas run on photovoltaics and batteries, often with a diesel generator as backup. Sewage goes into a septic tank (fosa séptica) that must be emptied regularly. Access often runs over private or shared tracks (camino) — check rights of way and maintenance obligations.
Rising damp (no damp-proof course), salt efflorescence, termites and woodworm in beams, roofs with lime mortar, 1970s electrics. A building survey (informe técnico) by an architect costs a few hundred euros and prevents five-figure surprises. Renovation on rústico is also subject to requirements (materials, volume, colours).
Rústico is zoned agricultural; olives, almonds, sheep are welcome, keeping horses is usually possible, commercial use restricted. Holiday letting needs an ETV licence, which on rústico is only issued in certain zones and within quotas — see the holiday rentals guide.
Nota simple and cadastre · permits for all structures · cédula · protected zones · water right and well test · cistern and delivery · power supply · septic tank · access and rights of way · building survey · boundaries (often just dry-stone walls) · running costs. We coordinate lawyer, architect and well driller — before you sign.
Reservation, arras, escritura, aftermath — what happens when, and where the traps are.
→What is allowed, what isn't — and why Airbnb yield calculations often don't add up.
→Salt air, damp, storms, pests, break-ins: what an unattended property loses in one winter.
We look at water, permits and fabric before you fall in love.
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