Property in Spain – New rules for holiday home rentals

How time flies by in good company. According to the calendar, it’s spring and that’s how it feels in the Spanish property market. Thank you to those of you who have chosen to use Dahls Estate as your preferred buyer’s agent here on the Costa del Sol. And… there’s probably a little bump in the road on the way. At least for those homeowners who plan to rent out their Spanish apartments during the periods when they are not using them themselves. And this will especially affect those of you who are considering buying a property in Spain with the intention of renting it out. So read on here:

From 3 April 2025, it will become more difficult for homeowners with apartments in shared residential buildings in Spain to convert them into short-term rentals for tourists.

With tourist numbers at historic highs and a severe housing shortage caused by record high rental and property prices, Spain’s national government is taking action to reduce private holiday rentals such as those on Airbnb.

Regulatory power is often decentralised in Spain, so cities and regions across the country have gradually introduced their own regulations for tourist apartments in recent years. This includes Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Málaga and Seville, where restrictions such as a halt on new tourist licences and rules on where they can open and in what types of buildings have been introduced.

However, from 3 April 2025, a new rule will come into effect that will affect the whole country. If a holiday rental is located in a shared ownership property, the owner will now need permission from the community of owners (comunidad de vecinos) in order to operate legally and obtain a tourist licence.

To implement this, the socialist-led government is amending the Condominium Law (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal) to limit the proliferation of holiday rentals.

The legal change was included in Organic Law 1/2025 and published in the Spanish Official Gazette (BOE) at the beginning of the year. However, the law has an implementation period of three months, which means it will come into effect on 3 April.

The new law now states: “The express prior authorisation of the owners’ association must be obtained” and specifies that the decision must be made with the support of at least three-fifths of the owners.

Previously, the owners’ association had some influence over the decision, but this change now gives them more power.

Royal Decree 7/2019, which came into effect six years ago, said that owners’ associations could “restrict or condition” holiday rentals in the building if three-fifths of the owners agreed. However, there have been several cases where the cases ended in lengthy court cases.

The law now goes a step further and specifically states that landlords must obtain “prior express authorisation”. It also states that neighbours have the right to report tourist apartments operating without their consent. UPS – be on the lookout for it.

“The president of the condominium association, on his own initiative or on the initiative of any owner or resident, may demand that the person operating the activity without express authorisation stop it immediately – with the warning that otherwise legal action will be taken,” the law reads.

It is important to note that this new law is not retroactive. Therefore, an owner who already has a tourist licence and is operating short-term rentals legally cannot have their licence overturned by the owners’ association.

The rule states: “Any homeowner who carried out the activity before the entry into force of the law and has complied with the regulations of the tourism sector may continue the activity under the conditions and deadlines established therein.”

The government of Pedro Sánchez hopes that this will slow down the growth of tourist flats in the big cities of Spain and help combat the housing crisis.

If you already have a tourist licence – please take note of this new rule that comes into effect on 1 July – see link below. IMPORTANT, because if you do not meet the new requirements, your licence may be revoked and you will be fined.

https://www.surinenglish.com/spain/keys-comply-with-the-single-register-tourist-20250225120339-nt.html

What the above will mean for marketability is for good reason unknown at this time. But one thing is for sure – no one can guarantee that you as a future home buyer can obtain a tourist licence at this time. This can only be applied for once you own the property. So we can’t even make the deal conditional on this being obtained. This requires that the property has changed to a new owner.

If you’re looking for a property that you and your family will use privately – then there’s no change. From the bank’s point of view, nothing has changed either. From a credit point of view, you will need to be able to cover the costs of buying the property without supplementing your rental income. So it’s only if you’re considering buying for investment purposes rather than short-term rental that the upcoming law will affect your considerations.

Dahls Estate is here on the Costa del Sol every day, and please get in touch with us if you are considering selling or buying a property. We look forward to hearing from you – call +34 633 406 353 or +45 26 46 17 60.

Hasta pronto

Lene Dahl