Converting a commercial unit into a home in Almería: requirements, paperwork and costs

By Álvaro García, registered architect no. 19625 (COAM). Reviewed in October 2026.

Yes, you can, if the local plan (PGOU) allows housing on that street and floor, the statutes of the community of owners do not forbid it and the unit can meet the conditions of a home. Because the change increases the number of homes, in Andalusia it needs a building licence (licencia de obra) with a technical design, and a responsible declaration (declaración responsable) is not enough (articles 137 and 138.1.f of the LISTA, Andalusia's planning act, Ley 7/2021). The town hall has three months to decide. The design costs from €1,600 + VAT, the building work is around €400 to €900 per m² as a published reference, and the whole process usually takes 6 to 12 months.

First: the local plan must allow it

Each municipality's local plan (PGOU) decides on which streets and floors homes are allowed. Almería, Roquetas de Mar, El Ejido, Vícar and Adra all have different plans, and the zone ordinance changes within each one.

Before you buy the unit or commission a design, check this:

Permitted use: that the ordinance for your zone allows housing on the ground floor, or on the floor where the unit is.
Number of homes: that the plot has not used up the density or the maximum number of homes the plan sets.
Parking: whether the plan asks for one garage space for each new home.
Minimum home: the floor area and rooms the plan itself requires. In El Ejido, for example, they are in articles 9.2.4 and 9.2.5 of its regulations.
Basements and semi-basements: plans regulate habitable rooms below ground level separately. In El Ejido, that is article 3.5.3 of its ordinances.

If the plan does not allow housing on that spot, no design will fix it. That is why feasibility comes before everything else.

The community of owners: statutes and common elements

The Ley de Propiedad Horizontal (Spain's horizontal property act) lets the community's founding deed (título constitutivo) or its statutes set rules on the use or purpose of flats and commercial units (article 5). Ask the administrator for a copy and read what it says about your unit.

The Supreme Court requires that any such restriction is stated expressly (judgment of 3 December 2014). The fact that the title deed describes the property as a commercial unit does not in itself stop you converting it to a home.

Works inside the unit: you can carry them out if they do not affect the safety of the building, its structure, its external appearance or other owners. You must first notify whoever represents the community (article 7.1).
Façade, structure and common elements: opening or enlarging openings, or touching floor slabs and downpipes, alters common elements. It needs the owners' meeting to agree, as well as the licence (article 10.3.b).
Statutes that forbid it: changing them needs unanimity (article 17.6).

Replacing a shop window with ordinary windows almost always touches the façade. Take the elevation drawing to the owners' meeting before you apply for the licence.

Conditions the unit must meet to become a home

Andalusia has no habitation certificate (cédula de habitabilidad). The conditions come from your municipality's local plan and from the Código Técnico de la Edificación (CTE, the national building code). Ley 5/2025, de Vivienda de Andalucía (Andalusia's housing act), defines habitability as the minimum quality requirements of a home (article 4.q).

The CTE applies to changes of use. When the change affects only part of a building, its requirements are met on the terms each basic document sets (article 2.6 of Part I).

What is checked	What often fails in a commercial unit	Where it is regulated
Floor area and layout	Small or very long units	Local plan (minimum home)
Clear height	False ceilings, hanging beams and mezzanines	Local plan
Lighting and ventilation	A single façade: bedrooms with no window onto the street or a courtyard	Local plan and CTE DB-HS 3 (indoor air quality)
Health and hygiene	Ground damp on the ground floor, water supply and drainage of its own	CTE DB-HS 1, HS 4 and HS 5
Fire safety	Separation from neighbouring units, garage or storerooms	CTE DB-SI
Safety of use and accessibility	A step at the entrance and level changes inside	CTE DB-SUA
Noise	Separation from the neighbouring unit, the street or the garage	CTE DB-HR
Energy saving	A shop-window façade with no insulation, and new installations	CTE DB-HE

When a CTE requirement is not feasible in an existing building, the designer can justify the closest workable solution, under their own responsibility (article 2.3). That rule belongs to the CTE: whatever the local plan asks for must be met.

Which procedure: a licence, not a responsible declaration

The LISTA allows changes of use in buildings on urban land to be done with a responsible declaration (declaración responsable), as long as they do not increase the number of homes and the new use is permitted (article 138.1.f). A commercial unit that becomes a home adds one home to the building. It falls outside that case and needs a building licence (article 137.1).

The same goes for the works: a responsible declaration only covers works that do not increase the number of homes (article 138.1.b).

What you submit: a technical design that justifies compliance with the local plan and the CTE, together with the licence application (article 2.3 of Part I of the CTE).
Time limit: the town hall must decide and notify within three months from the moment the documentation is complete (article 140.2).
Silence: once the time limit has passed, the law provides for approval by silence (silencio positivo), except in the cases covered by state legislation. No rights that go against planning rules can ever be acquired by silence (article 140.2).
Municipal fee and construction tax (ICIO): each local tax ordinance sets them. In Roquetas de Mar, the fee is 0.25% of the material execution budget, with a minimum of €55, and the ICIO is 3%.

Doing the works or using the unit as a home without a licence is a serious offence (article 161.3 of the LISTA). You also will not be able to register it as a home at the Land Registry.

The line between the two procedures is explained in our guide to building licence or responsible declaration.

After the works: occupancy, title deed, Land Registry and Catastro

Completion of the works. The site supervision team (dirección facultativa) certifies that the works are finished in line with the design and the licence.
Responsible declaration of occupancy. It is submitted to the town hall with that certificate (article 138.1.d of the LISTA and article 293 of its Regulation). It plays the role of the habitation certificate (cédula de habitabilidad) found in other regions.
Title deed for the change of use. The notary asks for the act that authorises the works and the authorisations that guarantee the building is fit for its use (article 28.1 of the consolidated text of the Ley de Suelo, the national land act).
Land Registry. The property stops being described as a commercial unit and is described as a home. The Dirección General de Seguridad Jurídica y Fe Pública (the national registries authority) treats a change of use as equivalent to amending a registered new build (resolution of 30 March 2026).
Catastro (the property tax register). The change of use must be declared within two months (article 16.2 of the Ley del Catastro and article 28.2 of Real Decreto 417/2006).
Utilities and energy performance certificate (EPC). The occupancy declaration is the document the electricity and water companies usually ask for. If you are going to sell or let, you need the EPC (article 3 of Real Decreto 390/2021).

Timescales and indicative costs

Stage	Timescale	Indicative cost
Feasibility and design	1 week, then 3 to 5 weeks	From €1,600 + VAT with us. Published prices in Almería: €300 to €4,000, with an average of €1,040
Licence	Up to 3 months from complete documentation	Fee and ICIO according to the tax ordinance. In Roquetas de Mar, 0.25% and 3% of the works budget
Building work	Depends on the condition of the unit	€400 to €900/m², national reference published in 2023
Occupancy, title deed, Land Registry and Catastro	Two months to declare at the Catastro	Notary and Land Registry, according to the official scale
Total	6 to 12 months

These figures are indicative. Example: a 60 m² unit in Roquetas de Mar with a material execution budget of €36,000 pays €1,080 in ICIO and €90 in fee.

At Poniente Arquitectura we handle the change of use to a home from €1,600 + VAT, with a fixed written quote within 24 hours. If you have not yet bought the unit, the feasibility report before you buy costs from €250 + VAT.

Frequently asked questions

Can I convert a commercial unit into a home with a responsible declaration?

No. A responsible declaration only works for changes of use that do not increase the number of homes (article 138.1.f of the LISTA). A commercial unit that becomes a home adds one, so it needs a licence.

Do I need permission from the community of owners?

Not if the title and the statutes do not expressly forbid it and the works do not touch common elements. If you open windows in the façade or affect the structure, you need the owners' meeting to agree (article 10.3.b of the Ley de Propiedad Horizontal).

How long does it take to convert a commercial unit into a home?

The design takes 3 to 5 weeks and the licence up to three months from the moment the documentation is complete. With the building work and the title deed, the total is usually between 6 and 12 months.

What if the unit has already been used as a home for years?

If it meets the plan, it is regularised by applying for the licence that was missing. The Land Registry does not record the change just because the Catastro describes the unit as a home: the Dirección General required municipal control in its resolution of 30 March 2026.

How much does it cost to convert a commercial unit into a home in Almería?

The design costs from €1,600 + VAT with us, and published prices in Almería range from €300 to €4,000. On top of that come the fee, the ICIO and the building work, which as a reference is around €400 to €900/m².

Sources

This guide is for information; every case needs a check of the local rules.