Spain’s Basque Country Homes Asked to Add Terraces and Balconies

Very soon, homeowners in Spain’s Basque Country who undertake a comprehensive renovation of their building will have to add terraces or balconies, providing the structure can withstand it. Each unit owner will receive a subsidy of up to €5,000. In new regional legisla

BY Realty Plus
Published - Monday, 14 Jun, 2021

Spain’s Basque Country Homes Asked to Add Terraces and Balconies

Very soon, homeowners in Spain’s Basque Country who undertake a comprehensive renovation of their building will have to add terraces or balconies, providing the structure can withstand it. Each unit owner will receive a subsidy of up to €5,000. In new regional legislation due to be approved at the end of the year, these open areas are now considered an essential element of a home’s livability, on a par with such basic requirements as usable floor area, ceiling height, insulation, sanitary conditions and accessibility. The balcony or terrace must have a minimum size of four square meters with a depth of 1.5 meters, and it will not be counted as part of the dwelling’s usable floor area. This is crucial, as these structures have been considered a negative element in the past, likely to devalue a property as they subtract useful surface area from the total. As a result, they have been reduced or eliminated altogether both by homeowners and developers in recent years. “Housing in Spain’s northern Basque region is among the oldest in southern Europe, which makes building renovation policies important, with lockdown offering lessons that have been incorporated into the new legislation. “Before the pandemic, we were already working on this concept of external livability,” explains Pablo García Astrain, head of Housing, Land and Architecture in the regional government. But adding an outdoor component to a façade is not easy. The first step is to make sure it is technically feasible. “A cantilever is being fitted and, therefore, an unforeseen outside load, so it is essential to observe the technical feasibility of the solution while ensuring people’s safety,” according to General Council of Official Associations of Technical Architects. “The installation of these balconies, if they are permanent, may require the reinforcement of the structure.” Permission from the city council is then needed to see if there are urban planning restrictions; and then there is the not-insignificant matter of the neighbors’ agreement since it affects the aesthetics of the façade and the structure of the building. Outdoor spaces have been at a premium since the beginning of the pandemic. With the lockdown, people who could afford to move started to seek property with a large balcony. This has been the premium product in the Spanish real estate market in 2020 and still is today, suggesting it is not just a passing fad.