Apartment for sale in Gràcia: an old green point that cannot be converted into a home is advertised for 230,000 euros

Barcelona"It's a good investment for its location and price," says an advert for a ground floor apartment in Barcelona's Gràcia neighbourhood. It also says that the property, located in a well-preserved 1900 building, needs to be completely renovated. And that it has one bedroom, one bathroom and a total surface area of ​​82 square metres. "The floor is continuous, the spaces are open plan," continues the advert, which also speaks wonders of a courtyard at the back, which can be used as a gallery. It even praises the area: "It's a place with its own heartbeat." All this, for 230,000 euros.

These are some of the things that the advert, posted on Idealista for a few days now, highlights. But what's important is what it doesn't say. The premises to be renovated, which the advertiser, Engel & Völkers Barcelona, ​​​​also highlights as not having heating or a lift, but which does have access adapted for people with reduced mobility, is an old green point, that is, a space where waste that cannot be thrown into the usual collection systems can be deposited. Although in the photos of the advertisement you can see how the premises retain vestiges of that previous use –grey rubber soil, yellow stripes on top and the first metre of wall painted with two thick green stripes–, what it also does not say is that this commercial premises cannot be lived in. Neither now nor in the future. In fact, in several photos of the advertisement, different spaces are advertised as what they could be: a small office, for example, which is supposed to be the kitchen, or the entrance itself, which in one photo is called a "parking space".

In a phone call, the real estate agent explains that the space lacks a license because it does not have a kitchen and is not licensed. And when asked why they are listing an unlicensed commercial premises as a flat, the person who answered the call explained that this premises cannot be changed for use. "Nowadays in Gràcia they do not allow changes of use. It is at the buyer's risk, if the neighbours do not want a person living on the ground floor, there may be a problem," he said. However, this is not exactly the case.

Housing density

One of the elements to take into account when changing the licence for a premises to be considered a dwelling is whether this premises is located in a commercial area or a residential area, since in the first case the change of use would be prevented. But this is not the case: the premises are located on Guilleries Street, which is residential and, therefore, the change of use from premises to dwelling is permitted, provided that the habitability regulations are met. However, there is a second element: the density of the building. Municipal sources consulted by the ARA explain that precisely "in this direction, the housing density has been exhausted, so this premises cannot be converted into a dwelling." This means that the property already has all the dwellings it can have. Therefore, according to regulations, even if this premises eventually met the habitability conditions, it could not be converted into a dwelling.

What else does the regulation say?

In general, in order to convert a commercial premises into a home, it is necessary that the space meets certain urban and physical requirements that depend on the town council and also on the Generalitat. We are talking about the surface area, height, compartmentalization, ventilation and accessibility, among others, which are included in decree 141/2012.

If a premises meets the necessary requirements to be inhabited, then it can have a habitability certificate, an administrative document that certifies whether the home meets the technical conditions for it to be habitable. In fact, it is necessary for the sale of a property and to register the water, electricity, gas, telecommunications and other services. It is necessary to ensure that the home has this certificate because in Catalonia notaries cannot sign sales if the home does not have it in force.