Buying a villa on the Montgó: six questions to ask before you fall for the view

Look at the villas Villalux is selling on the Montgó this week and you'll notice something: all six of our own listings there are south-facing. Plots run from 1,516 m² to 4,900 m², and the five with a fixed price range from €699,000 to €2,250,000.

That is no accident. The Montgó (753 m) rises between Dénia and Jávea, so the homes on its Jávea side look south, with the mountain at their back and shelter from the north winds. Here, “south-facing” is the starting point, not the selling point. What separates a great Montgó buy from a frustrating one is everything else. These are the six questions we'd ask before falling for the view.

Pool in front, mountain behind: a single-level villa on a flat, south-facing 1,979 m² plot in Montgó Valls. Photo: Villalux (ref. V2764C).

1. Where do the sun and the view actually fall?

On a south-facing plot the sun is in front of the house and the Montgó is usually behind it. So the classic Montgó photo, pool in front and cliffs above, is taken looking back at the house. At ref. V2764C, for example, the pool terrace looks up at the mountain while the front of the villa looks out over countryside and hills. Decide which view you want with your morning coffee, and visit on a winter afternoon to see where the light goes. Nearly every villa here has mountain views; a sea view usually means a higher plot.

A contemporary villa on a 1,516 m² south-facing plot on the Montgó, looking out across the valley. Photo: Villalux (ref. V2812C).

2. Flat or terraced, and what is the drive home like?

The Montgó has more level plots than people expect: all six of our current villas there describe theirs as flat. That makes gardening, children and getting older much easier. The lanes, though, are narrow and country-style, so drive the route yourself at school-run time, after dark, and with a removal lorry in mind. Ask who maintains a private lane. Ref. V2776C sits at the end of a private street shared with just one other home: wonderful for privacy, and worth understanding before you buy.

From above: pool, gardens and the narrow lane that serves a 1,728 m² Montgó plot. Photo: Villalux (ref. V2696C).

3. Where does the water come from?

Mains water in Jávea is supplied by Amjasa, the town's municipal water company. Some Montgó plots also have a private well for the garden; at V2776C the irrigation comes from a well on the plot, with the option to connect to Amjasa. If there is a well, ask for proof that it is registered with the Confederación Hidrográfica del Júcar (the river basin authority) and what use it is authorised for. A big garden in August is thirsty.

A flat 4,900 m² garden in Montgó Valls, irrigated from a well on the plot. Photo: Villalux (ref. V2776C).

4. Mains sewer or septic tank?

Not every villa on the Montgó is connected to the mains sewer. Xàbia has been extending its collectors here; in 2024, for example, it completed the Colector Montgó 3 on Camí Castellans, serving 567 homes. Ask whether the house is connected and, if not, what system it uses, when it was last serviced and whether connection is possible. It affects running costs and any future renovation.

5. What do the fire-prevention rules ask of you?

The question most buyers never ask. The Montgó is pine and scrub country, and the northeast of the natural park burned in August 1999. Valencian planning law (Annex XI of the TRLOTUP) requires owners of homes in or next to forest land to keep a protection belt around buildings, thin the shrubs, limit tree cover and prune trees up from the ground. In 2026 Xàbia approved its map of the urban-forest interface, and owners inside it have six months from approval to comply. If the plot falls within the area of the Montgó's natural resources plan (PORN), clearing work has to be coordinated with the park.

So ask whether the house is inside the mapped zone, whether the work has been done, and what it costs to keep up. The pines that make a plot so private are often the ones you'll be asked to thin.

Pines, terraces and the Montgó cliffs: beautiful, and part of the fire-prevention picture. Photo: Villalux (ref. V2696C).

6. What can you build, and is everything licensed?

The Montgó became a natural park in 1987, covering 2,117 hectares between Dénia and Jávea, and its 2002 natural resources plan added a buffer zone around it. Which side of those lines a plot falls on matters. Xàbia's planning still runs on its 1990 general plan while a new one awaits approval, so don't assume you can do what a neighbour did. Before you reserve, have your lawyer check that the house, pool and any guest accommodation are licensed and registered, and ask an architect what the plot allows. Our guide to buying a plot and building in Jávea covers the basics.

Your Montgó viewing checklist

• Sun and view. Stand on the terrace morning and late afternoon, ideally in winter.
• Access. Drive the lane at busy times; ask who maintains it.
• Water. Amjasa supply, and registration of any well.
• Sewerage. Mains, or which system and what condition.
• Fire zone. Inside Xàbia's interface map? Clearing up to date?
• Paperwork. Licences for everything built, and what the plot allows.

Montgó villas we're selling now

Three of our current listings show the range: ref. V2696C, a 1973 five-bedroom villa on 1,728 m² at €699,000; ref. V2776C, renovated in 2024 on 4,900 m² at €950,000; and ref. V2812C, built in 2016 on 1,516 m² at €1,595,000. See everything on our Montgó area page, or look at neighbouring La Corona and our homes with sea views.

This article is general information, not legal, planning or tax advice. Rules change and every plot is different, so always have your own lawyer and architect check the specific property. Prices and availability as of 9 November 2026.