Buying a property on the Costa Blanca North: the checks to make before the deposit
Villas on the hillsides of the Montgó, sea-view plots in Moraira and older houses inland: the Costa Blanca North is one of the favourite places for British, Dutch, Belgian and Scandinavian buyers. Most of what can go wrong is invisible on a viewing and is written in the official records.
Check a specific property →Costa Blanca North by town: official data
Town-level figures from official sources. They describe the area, not your house: a villa on high ground in a town with floods can be safe, and the opposite. The Hogarfax report checks the exact plot.
| Town | Population | Urban plots in 100-year flood zone | Forest fires 2006–2015 | Seismic acceleration (ab) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dénia | 47,261 | 15.1% | 3 (+5 small) | 0.06 g |
| Jávea | 30,642 | 5.0% | 4 (+11 small) | 0.05 g |
| Teulada | 12,912 | 0.6% | 1 (+5 small) | 0.06 g |
| Benitachell | 4,911 | 0.0% | none recorded | 0.05 g |
| Calp | 27,616 | 3.0% | 3 (+6 small) | 0.06 g |
| Altea | 24,592 | 1.6% | 2 (+15 small) | 0.08 g |
| L' Alfàs del Pi | 21,080 | 4.1% | 1 (+11 small) | 0.08 g |
| Benidorm | 77,327 | 0.6% | 2 (+22 small) | 0.09 g |
| Villajoyosa | 37,449 | 0.0% | 1 (+16 small) | 0.11 g |
Sources: population, INE municipal register (2025); flood, share of urban cadastral plots inside the 100-year river flood zone (SNCZI, MITECO; it does not cover rain or sea flooding, nor the Canary Islands); fires, municipal forest fire statistics (EGIF, MITECO, CC-BY 4.0); seismic, basic acceleration of the Spanish seismic building code NCSE-02.
Flood zones are not only by the river
Dénia and Jávea are crossed by barrancos — dry ravines that turn into torrents with the autumn gota fría. In Dénia about one in seven urban plots falls inside the official 100-year river flood zone (SNCZI, MITECO). Being in a flood zone affects insurance, the bank's valuation and what you can build, so check the exact plot, not the town average.
Wildfire: the pine-covered hills meet the villas
Urbanisations here climb into pine forest. In September 2016 a wildfire between Benitatxell and Jávea reached homes and forced evacuations. Ask whether the plot borders forest land, whether the urbanisation has a firebreak and whether the town has a wildfire emergency plan for it. You can follow fires live on our active fires map.
Old villas on rustic land and the cadastral use
Many houses from the 1970s–1990s were built on non-developable (rustic) land, and some extensions were never legalised. Valencian planning law (Ley 5/2014, LOTUP) has procedures to minimise their impact, but they are slow and not every house qualifies. A warning sign that is easy to spot: a house that the Cadastre does not record as a dwelling. We explain a real case in is it legally a home?
Utilities and the occupancy document
In the Valencian Community, connecting water or electricity again in an existing home without an occupancy document requires a declaración responsable of second occupancy (Decreto 12/2021). If the house is not a legal dwelling, that may not be possible. Ask the seller for the occupancy licence or declaration before signing.
41 things to check before buying a home in Spain
Many buyers think they can check it all themselves. In practice the data is spread across the Cadastre, the Land Registry, the Ministry for the Ecological Transition, the Nuclear Safety Council, the National Geographic Institute, regional planning and town halls, each with its own maps and its own language. Missing just one can cost far more than the house's renovation.
Legal status and land
- Cadastral use (is it legally a home?)
- Planning classification of the land
- Urban, developable or rustic land
- Livestock trails (vías pecuarias)
- River public domain (DPH)
- Coastal public domain and easements (Costas)
- Minimum habitable floor area
- Building inspection status (ITE/IEE)
- Land Registry: owner, mortgages, seizures, easements (Land Registry Study)
Natural hazards
- River flooding (100-year flood zone)
- Sea and coastal flooding
- Wildfire: forest next to the house
- Wildfire history of the area
- Areas burned in recent fires
- Active fires detected by satellite
- Earthquake hazard
- Radon gas
- Dams upstream
Installations and surroundings
- High-voltage power lines
- Electrical substations and energy plants
- Wind farms
- Solar farms
- Nuclear power plants
- Thermal power plants
- Macro-farms (intensive livestock)
- Factories and industrial land
- Landfills and incinerators
- Petrol stations next to the home
- Vacant plots next door (what will be built?)
- Noisy roads and motorways
- Railways
- Airports
The house and the price
- Real square metres vs the listing
- Age of the building and its parts
- Estimated renovation cost
- Asking price vs real sales nearby
- Indicative price range
- Estimated rent
- Real buying costs (taxes, notary, registry)
- Annual costs (IBI, community, waste)
- Facade photo and official record
The one you forget is the one that matters: a power line behind the garden, a macro-farm just down the road, a vacant plot next door where a block will go up, a ravine that floods once every few years, or a "villa" that the Cadastre doesn't record as a home. Hogarfax checks all of them for the exact property, with the official source of each one.
Before you pay a deposit in Costa Blanca North
- Check the exact plot, not the town: flood zone, distance to forest, planning classification and what is planned around it.
- Check it is legally a home: the cadastral use, the Land Registry description (nota simple) and the occupancy licence.
- Compare the real square metres with the listing and the price with real sales nearby.
- Make the deposit conditional on anything that doesn't add up, and have a lawyer review the contract.
Check the house you like in Costa Blanca North
The Hogarfax report checks the specific property against 30+ official sources — legal use, flood zone, wildfire, planning, real size and price — in English, reviewed by a person and emailed within 24 hours. €24.90 VAT included. Add the Land Registry Study (€89) and we request and explain the nota simple for you.
Find the property →Free: check the flood zone of an address on the flood zone page or the wildfire history on the wildfire map.
Frequently asked questions
Is Dénia in a flood zone?
Parts of it. About 15% of Dénia's urban plots are inside the official 100-year river flood zone (SNCZI, MITECO), mostly along its ravines. Whether a specific house is affected depends on the exact plot, which is what the Hogarfax report checks.
Can I buy a villa on rustic land in Jávea or Moraira?
You can, but check whether it was built with a licence or is time-barred, and whether it is recorded as a dwelling in the Cadastre and the Land Registry. Houses on rustic land have limits on extensions and can be hard to mortgage.
Which documents should I ask the seller for on the Costa Blanca?
The nota simple from the Land Registry, the occupancy licence or declaration, the latest IBI receipt, the energy certificate and, for urbanisations, the community fees certificate.
Other areas
Are you a lawyer, agent or adviser working with buyers here? See our partner programme. Written by Diana Popescu, Hogarfax. This guide is general information, not legal advice.