Buying Property in Mallorca: Municipal Restrictions & Hidden Costs Nobody Tells You About
Why almost no one tells you about municipal restrictions before you buy here…
Okay, let me be honest, because that's kind of my thing. 😄
I was born on a construction site. Literally. My parents were always renovating something, and at 18 I bought my first house and renovated it myself. Everyone thought I was crazy. Too young, too little experience, too much passion and not enough money.
Spoiler: that passion never went away. And that same stubborn honesty is what I bring to Mallorca now.
Because here's something almost nobody says out loud:
On this island, literally everyone is in real estate. Your neighbor, your brother-in-law's friend, the guy you meet on a terrace, literally everyone has a "contact" or is selling something themselves. And most of them are paid the moment you sign. Not before. Not to slow you down. Not to tell you what you actually need to know.
So here's what often gets skipped:
📍 Every municipality (ayuntamiento) has its own rules. What's allowed in Calvià isn't allowed in Palma. Rental restrictions, building limits, zoning , it's not one Mallorca, it's dozens of little rulebooks.
💰 ITP, plusvalía, notary fees. Foreign buyers are consistently surprised by how much these add up. Nobody mentions them upfront because it doesn't help close the deal.
🏖️ Licencia turística (tourist rental license) isn't available everywhere. And that one detail can completely change your return-on-investment math, the thing most people only find out after they've already bought.
❓ The real question: who guarantees the information you're given is actually accurate, when the person telling you gets paid the second you sign?
I'm not saying every agent here is out to get you. Most aren't. But the incentive structure is what it is: sell fast, cash out, move to the next one.
That's exactly why I do things differently. I don't make money when you buy. I make money by helping you manage what you own properly, honestly, for the long run. So when I tell you something, it's not to close a deal. It's because it's true.
👉 If you're thinking about buying in Mallorca, ask the uncomfortable questions before you sign anything. I'm always happy to point you in the right direction, no strings attached.
Vanessa Morgan
