Due to several recent legislative changes in rental legislation, seasonal letting in Spain - letting under common law - is back in the news. Mainly due to strict residential rental legislation, owners are trying to rent out via seasonal rentals. Therefore, you will find a discussion of the applicable rules in this article.
What is seasonal rental?
Seasonal rental ('arrendamiento de temporada') is actually letting under common law and is governed by national law. In the LAU, this is the national Spanish rental law, is this regime known under 'rental other than for housing / 'uso distinto al de vivienda'. The applicable law is the LAU, which is the national Spanish rental law, and the (possibly regional) civil code.
Contracts for seasonal rentals include students renting in a university city for 9 months, for example. Another example is a staff member who is temporarily operating for work in a region other than their home town, e.g. a Madrileen going to work in Murcia for an assignment for 6 months.
The criterion - supported by case law - is that seasonal rental is a temporary and a occasional character. Under no circumstances should the tenant intend to establish permanent residence there. Similarly, the tenant must not experience a need to use the rental property as his family home or permanent residence.
Seasonal rental versus residential rental
Once the tenant intends to establish permanent residence in the rental property, he enjoys the rights of residential tenancy. To avoid residential tenancy, it is therefore important that you clearly state the tenant's intentions in the lease. You can do this by, for example, stating the current place of residence, adding a prohibition on placing the domicile address in the rental property and stipulating the reason for the tenancy. Automatic renewals of the lease are also out of the question.
Seasonal rental versus holiday rental
Seasonal rental contracts became popular about 6-7 years ago to get around holiday rental rules. During recent years, these 'back doors' were systematically closed by the various autonomous regions. In most autonomous regions, including, for example, Andalusia, regularly renting out a move-in ready and equipped property for short periods using publicity channels (such as an Airbnb or bookings.com) is holiday rental. Similarly, if you provide certain hotel services, it is also a holiday rental.
By 'short periods' we mean contracts with a rental period shorter than 2 months. So in most autonomous regions, you cannot rent via seasonal rentals on a weekly basis. Seasonal rentals are then not an alternative to holiday rentals. In August 2024, the Comunitat Valenciana However, the 10-day rule for holiday rentals. Contracts with rental periods longer than 10 days (11 nights) now qualify as seasonal rentals in this region.
What does seasonal rental in Spain mean?
A broad contractual freedom for letting under common law. However, there are a number of conditions to consider.
Duration: the contractual term is determined according to the reason for entering into the lease. For example, a student enters into a contract for a period equal to the academic year. An overwinterer rents during the autumn and winter months.
Rental amount: freely agreeable between the parties (unlike residential rent in certain areas).
Subletting and rent transfer: if the tenant carries out a professional activity in the building, the tenant may sublet without the landlord's consent. The tenant must give the landlord 1 month's notice. The landlord can then charge up to 10% rent increase for a sublet and 20% when the lease is transferred.
Guarantee: the deposit is regulated regionally. In principle, the deposit is two months' rent. In addition to the rental deposit, the landlord may ask for other guarantees, such as a bank guarantee. The rental deposit must usually be deposited, depending on the autonomous region, one month after entering into the contract with a body recognised by the autonomous region. You can find the list of authorities by region here.
The rental deposit is required to be deposited even if the landlord has not received a deposit. In case of non-compliance, there are fines for the landlord, as well as negligence interest.
The security deposit must usually be released in full or in part within one month, depending on whether or not damage was found based on a site survey.
Specifically for the Comunitat Valenciana:
- a deposit is required from the rental period exceeds 10 days;
- the minimum deposit is 2 months for seasonal rental, regardless of the rental period;
- there is a notification period for the deposit of 30 days (modelo 817), during which the rental deposit must be paid to 'El Registro de fianzas de la Generalitat‘;
- the obligation not to notify and deposit rent guarantees for contracts shorter than 30 days applies because the rental period ends before the expiry of the notification period;
- any contracting party may notify the rental deposit, but recovery is done by the landlord.
Renovation works and repairs: renovation works during the lease term are possible, but the tenant can terminate the contract if the works cause the property to become unlivable. The repair works are for the landlord and must be carried out after the expiry of the contract if possible. If the repair works take more than 20 days during the rental period, the tenant is entitled to a rent reduction. The tenant may not carry out any works himself without prior permission.
Termination of the agreement: the landlord can terminate the lease if the tenant does not pay the rent and/or the agreed (fixed) costs,. The landlord may also terminate the contract if the deposit has not been paid. The landlord may also terminate the contract if the tenant deliberately causes damage to the property or if the tenant carries out illegal or undesirable activities in the property.
Sharing tenant data with police: this obligation applies to all short-stay accommodation ('actividades de hospedaje'), whether or not they constitute a professional activity. The regulations also target accommodations created through a digital platform. You should therefore share guest information with the police through the official platform of the Spanish government.
EPC certificate: the landlord must have an EPC certificate for residential lettings. Exceptions apply when letting to a professional.
