1. Glossary Of Spanish Real Estate Terms
First up, and if you're moving to a major city such as Madrid, Barcelona or Seville, it's likely you'll be
looking to buy an apartment or flat within a block. In Spanish this is not particularly complicated to
translate, being named as an "Apartamento" or "piso". These are usually self-contained dwelling
spaces, with communal amenities such as stairways, lifts or elevators and patios or rooftop terraces.
This is not always the case, with some private apartments on the top floor including a private terrace
which belongs solely to that apartment. Don't automatically assume you will have access to these
spaces.
Apartments are also usually managed by an administrative body, known as "administrador de fincas"
whose job it is to manage any legal issues within the community, hold official meetings to discuss
communal problems the building may have in way of drainage, maintenance of the communal areas
and repairing of wear and tear within the block. Apartment sizes vary widely within city blocks, with
some as small as twenty square metres known as "macro pisos" or "studio" apartments and ranging
up to huge apartments of two hundred or more square metres. These latter properties obviously
come with a pretty price.
A "Loft" in Spanish real estate lends its name from 50s New York and refers to a large living space
with very few divisions, usually with very bright light from large windows. This term is often used
misleadingly by owners vying for a "cool" angle, and is technically only reserved for industrial style
spaces, generally quite large, and not necessarily high up on an upper level as the English language
definition would suggest.
If you find a "Duplex" in Spain, then as the name suggests, this is a living space on two levels
connected by an internal staircase. Often in apartment blocks, the top floor has a higher ceiling than
those which precede it, allowing for upper levels to be constructed for additional bedrooms or living
rooms, for example. In towns or suburbs, duplex housing can look very similar to a common house,
but generally are slimmer in that they only have a maximum of two rooms up and down, as opposed
to a house which can be constructed as wide as the plot of land allows.
Traditionally a "Chalé" or "chalet" springs images of wooden farmhouses in Switzerland and Alpine
mountains. In Spain, however, it can be used to describe a small house with little division between its
neighbouring house and of similar dimensions to a studio apartment. Chalets are often in seaside
towns, and are second homes or holiday homes for many Spanish residents.
A "Casa" is a traditional house, and is constructed on private land, exactly as in any place in the
world. Houses are usually detached, but can be semi-detached and can include gardens and
grounds, swimming pools and farming areas - there are no differences here in the generic term.
Finally a "Local" is that space which is usually reserved for office or retail space on the ground floor of
a building. Shop fronts, cafes and restaurants are all housed in the "locals" which can occasionally be
reformed and reconstructed to make living spaces. Permission is required for any of the above
mentioned dwellings, in the form of a certificate of habitability - given by an architect and essential in
any dealings of real estate, be it selling or buying. This is known as a "cedula de habitabilidad" and

2. particularly "locales" often have difficulty in meeting the set of requisites and standards to obtain this
certificate. If you ever fancy looking into this option, it's important to insist in viewing an up-to-date
certificate.
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