I am buying a second home in the Costa de la Luz, and am thinking of renting it out on a short-term or possibly a longer-term basis. Do I need a licence to rent it as a holiday home, and what does a contract for a longer-term let need to include?
Published on 06/07/2012 by Jaime Morales Conde Founding partner of the law firm ATKINS&MORALES; Bilingual lawyer (Spanish/English) of the Ilustres Colegios de Abogados (Bar Associations) of Seville and Cadiz, with offices in both cities.
Law 29/1994, of 24th November, on Urban Leasing (LAU) establishes two broad categories of leasing: one where the property is used for residential purposes and another for properties which are used by the tenant for a purpose other than as a permanent residence, which includes “seasonal rentals”.
In principle, the LAU does not require a licence for seasonal rentals. However, although this may be the case in principle, it is important to point out that if the property has been classified as “Holiday Accommodation for Tourists”, and is therefore regulated by LAW 12/1999, of 15th December, on Tourism in Andalusia, it must be registered on the Tourism Registry of Andalusia, and moreover, if required, the tenant must hold the appropriate licences or permits granted by the relevant competent authorities.
In order to protect the interests of the landlord and tenant, the property rental contract must cover all the minimum conditions, as established in Title II of the LAU (term, price, deposit, building work, inventory, etc.) and in the absence thereof, the Civil Code; albeit that the interests of each of the contracting parties must be treated differently, and thus it is advisable to seek specific professional advice in this case.
Lastly, in terms of the execution of the contract, the LAU allows the parties the freedom of choosing between an oral agreement, which is not advisable, or in writing. Moreover, the law expressly grants the parties to any rental contract, whatever its term may be, the right to access the Property Registry.
Photo by Johan Mouchet on Unsplash
