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Tenants
rights in Spain -
renting property
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Foreigners renting property in
Spain are often unaware of their
rights, for example if you are
renting an apartment on a 2 year,
residential contract (a vivienda),
and the landlord says at the end
of the contract period that you
must vacate, you can apply to the
court for an extension to your
contract for up to five years. |
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If
the
landlord
sells
the
property
during
the
life
of
your
contract,
you,
the
tenant
have
the
right
to
first
refusal.
If
the
landlord
does
not
make
this
offer
and
the
property
is
sold,
you
have
the
right
to
have
the
sale
annulled
and
buy
the
property
yourself
for
the
price
declared
in
the
sales
documents. |
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It
is
for
these
reasons
that
a
landlord
in
Spain
will
want
a
tenant
out
of
the
property
before
he
decides
to
buy,
and
a
buyer
will
very
rarely
be
interested
if
there
is
a
tenant
in
the
property.
If
such
a
buyer
can
be
found
then
the
tenant
has
the
right
for
his
rental
contract
to
be
continued
by
the
new
owner. |
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| These laws do not apply to a short-term rental, ie for a month's holiday. These short-term lets are called 'temporada' contracts and cannot be extended. |
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| There is no set legal limit as to when a short-term let becomes long-term, however 12 months seems to be the accepted norm. This must be examined in the wording of any contract. Because vivienda tenants acquire more rights than temporada, it is often written in a contract that the terms, regardless of the length, are by means of a temporada contract. |
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A law passed in 1995 also enables a landlord to take a security deposit with a rental contract, to offset against any damages. This is one month's rent for a house and 2 month's rent for a property for any other use. The deposit is called a fianza and should be lodged with an independent, third party such as an agent. It is often common practice for the landlord to hold the deposit himself but be aware that this gives him full control. |
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