Escrito por Nicki Price, CEO
Buying a distressed hotel or guesthouse on the Costa del Sol in 2026 means paying 7% ITP (transfer tax) in Andalucía on the higher of the price or the Catastro's valor de referencia, then budgeting roughly 10-13% on top in total for tax, notary, registry and legal fees. The real cost, though, is not the purchase, it is the licensing chain: unless the building already holds a valid licencia de apertura and tourism registration, you will need the town hall's blessing for the use, an activity licence and (if you are changing what the premises are for) a formal change of use. Get those checked before you sign the arras, because a bargain that can't legally open is not a bargain.
This guide is written for international buyers looking at small hotels, hostales, B&Bs and mixed-use premises along the Costa del Sol, and, where the rules differ, we flag the position on the Costa Almería, Costa Cálida and Costa Blanca too.
A distressed property is simply one being sold under pressure, a tired or closed hostal, a guesthouse whose owners have retired, a bank repossession, or premises caught in an insolvency. The appeal is price; the catch is that whatever closed it (debt, licensing problems, structural decay) usually comes with the keys.
On the Costa del Sol these fall into three broad groups: licensed trading hotels that have simply stopped operating, residential or commercial buildings someone wants to convert into tourist accommodation, and bank- or court-sold assets. Each has a very different licensing path, so the first job of your lawyer is to establish exactly which one you are buying. If it is a bank asset, our guide to bank repossession property on the Costa Almería explains how those sales work; many of the same principles apply across Andalucía.
Check before anything else. A legally operating hostal in Andalucía needs two things working together: a licencia de apertura / actividad (opening/activity licence) from the Ayuntamiento, and registration with the Junta de Andalucía's tourism register (Registro de Turismo de Andalucía) under Decreto 13/2020, which governs hotel and apartment-hotel establishments. A guesthouse marketed as a "hostal" or "pensión" must sit in the right category; a vivienda con fines turísticos (VFT) is a different, lighter regime for homes, not commercial lodging businesses.
Ask the seller, in writing, through your lawyer, for the apertura licence, the tourism registration number, the latest first-occupation or habitability documents, the energy certificate and a recent nota simple showing no embargos or undisclosed charges. If any is missing or "being renewed", treat the business as unlicensed and price it accordingly. Our wider explainer on the tourist rental licence rules in Spain for 2026 is useful background, though note that running a hotel is a commercial activity, not a VFT let.
A cambio de uso is the formal reclassification of what a building is legally for, residential, commercial, tourist-lodging, recorded at the Ayuntamiento and ultimately the Registro de la Propiedad. You need one whenever the activity you plan differs from the use the property currently holds: turning a block of flats or a shop into a hostal, or converting a former guesthouse that has lapsed back to residential use into a trading business again.
Change of use is granted by the town hall under its own Plan General de Ordenación Urbanística (PGOU), so what is possible in Marbella may be refused two streets away or in Estepona. It typically requires a project signed by an architect, proof the building meets current fire, accessibility and sanitary standards, and, crucially, that the tourist/commercial use is permitted on that plot. There is no national shortcut: the PGOU and the municipal planning department decide. Before you commit, have your lawyer request a certificado urbanístico confirming the permitted uses for the exact cadastral reference.
Distressed commercial buildings are often older and converted piecemeal over decades. Fire regulations, disabled access (Andalucía applies strict accessibility rules to public-use premises) and minimum room sizes for tourist lodging can force expensive works. A structural survey on the Costa del Sol is not optional here, it is the difference between a renovation budget and an open-ended money pit. If major works are planned, read our guide to renovating property in Spain for the permit sequence.
For a resale commercial property on the Costa del Sol you pay 7% ITP in Andalucía, calculated on the higher of the agreed price or the Catastro valor de referencia, a point most competitor articles miss, and one that can push the tax bill above what you expected on an under-valued distressed asset. A new or substantially reformed commercial unit sold by a business is subject to 10% IVA plus 1.2% AJD stamp duty in Andalucía instead. Add notary (~0.2-0.5%), land registry (~0.1-0.25%), a lawyer (~1% + IVA) and a gestoría (~€300).
| Cost item | Costa del Sol / Almería (Andalucía) | Costa Cálida (Murcia) | Costa Blanca (C. Valenciana) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resale transfer tax (ITP) | 7% | 7.75% | 9% (from 1 Jun 2026) |
| On €900,000 | €63,000 | €69,750 | €81,000 |
| Notary ~0.2-0.5% | €1,800-4,500 | €1,800-4,500 | €1,800-4,500 |
| Land registry ~0.1-0.25% | €900-2,250 | €900-2,250 | €900-2,250 |
| Lawyer ~1% + IVA | ~€10,890 | ~€10,890 | ~€10,890 |
| Gestoría | ~€300 | ~€300 | ~€300 |
| Rule-of-thumb total on top of price | ~10-11% | ~11-12% | ~12-13% |
Note the ITP band: in the Costa Blanca (C. Valenciana) the resale rate drops to 9% for deeds signed from 1 June 2026 under Ley 5/2025 (with an 11% band above €1M), and it is the notary signing date, not the arras date, that decides which rate applies. For a new-build commercial asset, the AJD stamp duty is 1.2% in Andalucía, 1.5% in Murcia and 1.4% in C. Valenciana. On an asset bought below valor de referencia, remember the tax is still charged on that reference value, so always ask the tax position early.
These are three different deals with three different tax outcomes. Buying the freehold building is a property purchase (ITP or IVA as above). Buying the business as a going concern (traspaso) may transfer the trading licence and goodwill but often needs the landlord's consent if the premises are leased. Buying the company (SL) that owns the hotel can inherit hidden liabilities, debts, employment claims, tax arrears, so demands full due diligence.
Which structure suits you depends on tax, liability and how you will run the business. Our guide to buying property jointly or via a company in Spain sets out the trade-offs. For a distressed asset, the safest default is usually an asset purchase of the building with a fresh licence application, so you do not inherit someone else's problems, but take professional advice on each case.
Running costs are where distressed hotels quietly drain cash. Budget for IBI (property tax, higher on commercial than residential), rubbish and sewerage rates, business insurance, and far higher utility consumption than a home, commercial premises pay commercial electricity and water tariffs. Add staff costs (Spanish social security contributions are significant), an annual accountant, licence renewals and the tourist tax collection obligations that apply to registered establishments.
If a private pool is part of the offer, commercial-use pools carry their own licensing and water-treatment duties, heavier than for a private home, as our private pool licences and costs guide explains.
Each step can take months and any one can fail, which is why the arras contract should be conditional on satisfactory urbanistic and licensing confirmations. When it comes to signing, our notary and completion-day guide walks through the escritura.
Mediter currently lists 8,197 properties for sale across Costa Blanca South, Costa del Sol, Costa Cálida, Costa de Almería, Costa Blanca North and Mallorca. While the bulk of that stock is residential, it gives a real sense of where commercial-conversion opportunities cluster, the established resort towns and inland hubs where guesthouses historically traded. If you are weighing locations, our Estepona property investment guide and the comparison of the four coasts for 2026 are good starting points before you narrow a search with our team.
A resale commercial property in Andalucía attracts 7% ITP, charged on the higher of the price or the Catastro valor de referencia. A new or substantially reformed unit sold by a business is subject to 10% IVA plus 1.2% AJD stamp duty instead.
Only if the municipal PGOU permits tourist or commercial use on that plot and you obtain a change of use (cambio de uso) from the Ayuntamiento, backed by an architect's project and compliance with fire, accessibility and sanitary standards. Always get a certificado urbanístico for the exact cadastral reference first.
Yes. A commercial lodging business (hostal, pensión, hotel) needs a licencia de apertura and registration as a hotel establishment under Decreto 13/2020, which is a heavier regime than the vivienda con fines turísticos (VFT) that applies to holiday homes.
On tax, yes, Andalucía's 7% resale ITP is lower than the Costa Cálida's 7.75% (Murcia, Ley 3/2025) and the Costa Blanca's 9% from 1 June 2026 (C. Valenciana, Ley 5/2025). But purchase price is only part of the equation; licensing and compliance costs often dwarf the tax difference.
Licensing and compliance works. A bargain building that cannot legally open, or that needs major fire and accessibility upgrades before it can, may cost far more than a slightly dearer property that already holds a valid activity licence and tourism registration.
Buying a distressed hotel or guesthouse rewards buyers who do the licensing homework before they sign, and that is where good local advice pays for itself. If you are exploring commercial property or a change-of-use project on the Costa del Sol, Costa Almería, Costa Cálida or Costa Blanca, contact Mediter Real Estate. Our team can help you line up the urbanistic checks, the right legal structure and a realistic running-cost budget before you commit.
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