Community: BANK ACCOUNT

Can  anyone  enlighten  me on  the  following,

We  are  a  community  of  18  apartments,  all  apartments  are  owned  by  non  residents,  the  bank  account  (CAM  BANK)  has  until  recently  been  adninistered  by  a  resident  in  Spain  but  not  an  owner.

My  question  is,  the  bank  have  told  the  community  that  they  cannot  give  the  President  or  any  other  non  resident  owner  permission  to  administer  the  account ,  draw  any  monies  or  even  request  an  account  statement  even  when  the  President  is  named  on  the  account  as  second  cheque  signatory.

To  run  the  community  account  do  you  have  to  be  a  resident  in  Spain ?

Sanoliver

Hello. Your Bank is talking utter rubbish. I am the President of my community in Orihuela costa. We have over 80 property's. I  live in the UK. You have to have a minimum of  2 names on the community account. Cheques must be signed by at least 2 of the registered names. Under the Law of Horizontal property ownership the President is the person responsible under the Law. You should have an AGM once a year to discuss and plan the spend of your community with the owners. You should have at the very least  have a consitution which states rules and regulations of your community. This must be agreed and voted on by the owners. You can also enlist a profesonial  administrator, but that does cost money and if you are only a small community this might be too expensive for you. It is not required under the law to have a profesional administrator. The President can act as both, but you might want to enlist another owner to do this and work together, but always remember the President is responsiable, I can't emphasise that enough... I would suggest you obtain a book called YOU and the Law in Spain by David Searle, a really useful book.  If your Bank won't be helpful, hold an Extrodinary AGM and get permission to open a new Bank account with another Bank. Have all your fees paid into the new account and use the Cam bank to pay your direct debits for Water and electricity until you can either transfer the funds in the Cam bank to your new account or until its empty. Your AGM must be minuted and recorded in a special book which should be signed and stamped at the notary's office. This is a legal requirement. Who opened your community account in the first place? Hope this helps. I will keep an eye out for you reply. Pasha

Thanks  Pasha 01,  we  have  our  AGM  on  28/02/11  so  thanks  for  the  information.

Everything  you  refer  to  is  in  hand  but  we  were  unsure  or  ill  advised  ref  the  bank  account.

We  shall  proceed  as  your  guidelines  with  the  bank.

Sanoliver

Hi Just remember it's your money( the community's) so  don't put up with poor service from your bank or get shot of them. It will be their loss. All the best.  Pasha.

Question by Sanoliver: To  run  the  community  account  do  you  have  to  be  a  resident  in  Spain ?

To be elected as member of the Commitee and be able to operate the Community accounts there is no legal need of being a resident, just  ownership is enough.

Thank  you  once  again  Maria,  invaluable  support  to  site  users  as  always.

Sanoliver

A pleasure!

Maria