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PROPERTY

Vacant apartments held for ransom in Spain

A wall of bricks and cement covers the window of a brand new apartment on the ground floor of a quaint building in Barceloneta, a trendy seaside neighbourhood in Barcelona.

Vacant apartments held for ransom in Spain
Photo: Pau Barrena/AFP

The goal? To prevent the vacant flat from being taken over by organised gangs who break into empty homes, hand them over to others for a fee who then proceed to hold the owners to ransom — a phenomenon that has homeowners and authorities concerned.

They “look for empty flats online or in public registries to break in,” says Enrique Vendrell, president of Barcelona's College of Property Managers, which groups professionals in the sector.

They then change the locks, hook up the property illegally to electricity, gas and water before selling the keys to squatters keen to make some cash who will demand money from the owners to leave, he adds.

It is difficult to get exact figures on the extent of a relatively-new phenomenon, but the trend is serious enough to worry real estate professionals, home owners and authorities.

Police in the northeastern region of Catalonia where Barcelona is located told AFP they were investigating serious cases of “criminal occupations” of flats, but refused to give further details, such as where the gangs come from.

Meanwhile AFP contacted several victims but they all declined to tell their story for fear of retaliation from the squatters, who often threaten homeowners if confronted.

“Ring the doorbell again and you will regret it,” squatters told an elderly woman when she confronted a group of people who were illegally occupying her apartment, her lawyer Jose Maria Aguila said.

READ ALSO: More news from Barcelona

Juan Carlos Parra, a salesman with security firm STM Seguridad which specialises in installing steel doors in buildings, says there is strong demand for “advanced security systems.”

“Demand has taken off in the last three years, we install around 1,500 doors a month across Spain,” he adds.

The problem stems in part from the collapse of a decade-long property bubble in 2008 that left thousands of buildings empty across Spain.

There are 3.4 million empty properties in Spain, the equivalent of 13.7 percent of all real estate in the country, the national statistics institute says.

Many are in the hands of banks which inherited them after builders or buyers were unable to pay back their loans.

Just in Catalonia alone, banks own 45,000 empty apartments, according to the regional government's housing department.

These are the most sought after since lenders usually take longer to act against an occupation.

Such is the problem of squatting in vacant flats that it has given rise to a firm called Desokupa that specialises in evicting squatters.

The company based in Catalonia and Madrid insists its employees carry out “respectful mediation” between the property owners and the squatters.

If that fails though, it employs burly former boxers and security guards to stand guard outside an occupied apartment to drive away the squatters.

But Vendrell says there is a difference between squatters looking for a place to live because they have fallen on hard times or who remain in their flat as they can't pay rent, and gangs who take over properties.

He says these organised groups charge less than 1,000 euros ($1,100) per apartment seized.

Those who take over the flats then typically demand between 3,000 and 6,000 euros to leave.

And in some cases, owners prefer to pay to save time.

Antoni Garriga, a lawyer with Navarro Advocats who often deals with eviction cases, says it can take six to eight months for an eviction notice to be issued.

The process can take even longer if the illegal occupants manage to evade court notifications to leave the apartment, he adds.

Barcelona mayor Ada Colau, a former anti-eviction activist, argues reducing the number of empty apartments would go a long way to solving the problem.

“We need more empty homes to be offered as social rental housing,” she said in a recent interview with Antena 3 television.

For members

PROPERTY

Is it better for landlords in Spain to rent to temporary or long-term tenants?

If you own property in Spain that you don’t live in yourself, it’s likely that you’ll be renting it out, but is it best to rent it out on a temporary or long-term contract?

Is it better for landlords in Spain to rent to temporary or long-term tenants?

Your decision to rent out to temporary or long-term renters will of course be influenced by whether or not you intend to use your property yourself during parts of the year, but if not, it’s worth keeping in mind what the differences are. 

Besides the duration of the contract, the laws that govern each situation are different and the tax implications differ too.

READ ALSO: What are the requirements for landlords to rent out a property in Spain?

Long term contracts

Renting out long-term is governed under the Urban Leasing Law (LAU), which aims to provide shelter to families permanently and indefinitely.

It is possible to update the rent each year, depending on the price index or specific regulations at the time.

For example, in 2024, there is currently a three percent price cap. This means that you won’t be able to raise the rent on contracts that are already in force above three percent. The rental cap, however, does not apply to new contracts signed, or those signed after 2019.

Long-term contracts have a minimum duration of five years, however, your tenants can leave any time after six months as long as they give 30 days’ notice.

If you decide you need the property for yourself, you must wait until one year has elapsed on the contract and then give your tenants two months to vacate the property.   

If you decide to sell the property on the other hand, your tenant has the right to stay for up to three months or until the property is sold.

READ ALSO – Renting in Spain: When can a landlord legally kick out a tenant?

Temporary contracts

Regarding temporary rental, the law frames it under the label “rental for use other than housing”.

Temporary contracts must be for a minimum of 32 days, any shorter than this and they would be considered tourist rentals. Rentals to tourists are covered under a completely different set of rules and regulations and in many places require a tourist licence too.

READ ALSO: The rules for getting a tourist licence to rent out your Spanish property

Temporary contracts must also not be longer than 11 months. Beyond that time it would be considered a long-term rental and a long-term contract up to five years like above, would need to be issued.                                                                                                 

There is more flexibility when setting rents for temporary contracts. These are typically higher than long-term rents because of various factors, such as the addition of furniture, bills and wi-fi being included and the fact that they’re often rented out in high season. 

It’s worth keeping in mind that a high tenant turnover carries a slightly greater risk than when you rent your property out long-term. You or a management company will need to be more involved too.  

READ ALSO: Why you should consider renting out your property in Spain to students

It’s important to consider taxes when deciding to rent out to temporary or long-term renters. Photo: Andrea Piacquadio / Pexels

Declaring tax on rent from long-term contracts

You must pay taxes on your net income if you rent out long-term.  

This means adding up all the gross income for the year and deducting all the expenses involved with the rental. The following expenses are deductible:

– Waste collection fee
– Real Estate Tax (IBI)
– Insurance in case your tenants can’t pay the rent
– Home Insurance
– Community expenses
– Mortgage interest
– Real estate commissions

As the apartment serves as the tenants’ habitual residence, the tax authorities will also apply a 60 percent bonus on the net income before subjecting it to tax. This means the amount subject to personal income tax is only 40 percent of the net rental income.

These bonuses may be even higher if the conditions of the new Housing Law, introduced in 2023, are met.

Declaring tax on rent from temporary contracts

You must declare the income from all the temporary contracts that occur during the same fiscal year.

Expenses can be deducted just as before, but these may be different such as cleaning services between tenants and household bills, if they’re included.

You are also taxed on your net income, however, there are no bonuses applied like with long-term contacts as it is not considered to be the tenants’ main residence.

This means you will pay tax on 100 percent of the net income and not 40 percent like above.

You will also be charged tax on any time the apartment has been empty. This amount will depend on the cadastral value of the home and the number of days there hasn’t been anyone staying in it.

Declaring tax on rental income as a non-resident

If you’re a non-resident who owns a property in Spain and rents it out, the rules on taxes will be slightly different.

As a non-resident, you must pay income tax on rent earned in Spain as well as local property taxes such as waste tax and IBI.

If you rent your property out temporarily then you will need to submit quarterly tax returns, not just annual ones. You will also be charged tax for the periods when your property was empty. 

Those from the EU will be charged 19 percent, while everyone else will be charged 24 percent.

It’s very important to remember that if you’re from a non-EU country, such as the UK, the US or Canada you will not be allowed to deduct any expenses from your rental income, therefore you will pay tax on the full gross amount you earn.

To find out more, read our guide to non-resident tax in Spain.

Conclusion

The answer as to whether temporary or long-term contracts are best for landlords will completely depend on your situation and your preferences.

Long-term contracts are easier because you won’t have so much turnover and won’t have to be as involved. There are also various bonuses and tax breaks you can benefit from.

You can earn more from temporary contracts, but this means you will also pay more in taxes too and won’t get any bonuses. It will also take up more of your time, however, it’s a good option for those who want to use their property themselves for part of the year. 

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