Long term renting - questions from a prospective tenant

Hi  We will be needing a flat to rent in Barcelona from early next year.

I'm keeping an eye on Idealista and other rental sites to get an idea of prices.

Couple of questions if anyone knows the answers ......

Is there any tenants deposit protection scheme in Spain ? - in the UK tenant's deposits are now protected by some fairly strict legislation. Most landlords asking at least two months as a deposit.

Who pays the property taxes - local taxes similar to UK rates?

Does the landlord pay the community or apartment service charges?

Some Landlords are asking for a Val or bank guarantee - how does this work?

Thanks Paul

Hi Paul

I'm not aware of any deposit protection scheme.  Most landlords require 1 months rental in advance, 1 month as deposit and if you are using an agency, they take an extra 1 months rental as their commission.

The property taxes and community fees are normally paid by the landlord, but you'd need to make sure that that is clear in the agreement.

Not sure about a bank guarantee and how that would work.

You can find some articles relating the legal aspects of renting in Spain in the renting in Spain section of our articles.

Hope that helps.

Justin

You may want to ask your Landlord to look into placing your deposit with a neutral 3rd party  called the "Consejería de la Vivienda", which is actually a Government Agency. Failing that you could maybe agree on using the services of a jointly choen Asesor to hold the deposit in escrow for you both.

The property and community teaxes & charges are 'usually' paid by the landlord, but you should ensure that this is written into your contract to prevent any misunderstandings.

Have a look at this to see if it answers any other questions that you may have  -  http://www.tumbit.com/how-to-guides/articles/30-property-rental-the-tenant.html

 Useful info - thanks.

Paul