Landlords : The Tenant Eviction Process

At the end of 2009 a new law came into force in Spain intended to promote and protect the rights of landlords and their rental properties, known as the express eviction law (19/2009).

This new law and it’s subsequent conditions apply to all types of rented properties – residential and commercial, Rural or Urban and short term or long term contracts. Essentially it protects the rights of the landlord by streamlining what was previously a time consuming and complicated process to evict undesired tenants. The overall intention here is to encourage landlords to bring the estimated 3 Million empty properties back into the rental market .

This new law also allows landlords who want to recover possession of property for their own use or to provide a permanent home for their parents, children, or for their ex-wife or ex-husband following a divorce or separation.

A Property owner wishing to take advantage of this can now apply for eviction on the grounds of just one month’s rent arrears.

If and when this is the case, the express eviction law states that the following steps should be taken in order for this to done legally :

Firstly an official notice should be sent in writing to the Tenant demanding that payment of the rent arrears is met within 7 days. This letter / fax / e mail should contain as much detail as possible describing how the arrears have built up and over what period of time.

If the Tenant does not pay the rent arrears within the stated 7 days, or contact the landlord to arrange an agreed payment plan, then the landlord can then apply for a Court Summons to evict the Tenant and recover the rent that he is due.

In order for this to be fully legal, the paperwork must be provided in Spanish, and the following documents must also be provided :

•A copy of the rental contract

•A copy of the Landlord’s ‘escritura’ to prove that they the legal owner

•A written statement of the amount of rent owed together with any outstanding utility bills

•Copies of all previous written demands for the money owed

The Court Summons can then be sent to the Tenant in question. However, the Tenant does not have to accept the Summons themselves; it is only required to be delivered to the property.

A soon as the summons has been sent, the Tenant then has 20 days in which he has a last opportunity to settle the matter directly with the landlord. The Tenant can make an offer to pay the arrears through the Court which the Landlord can choose to accept or reject. If the Landlord agrees to this, but the Tenant reneges yet again, then the Landlord can apply for eviction without the involvement of the Courts. If the Landlord rejects the Tenant’s offer the Landlord can apply immediately to the Court to evict the Tenant.

On signing off on the eviction notice, the court also gives notice of a date when the police will effect the eviction, and this can not be less than 15 days. At this point the landlord can apply for his costs to be taken into consideration, and if applicable to be charged to the Tenant.

Once the eviction order has been passed, the Tenant will have a judgment registered against him at the central registry of judgments in Madrid which will affect his ability to obtain credit and possibly rent other premises in the future.

As with any legal or financial agreement in Spain, Tumbit strongly advises that any rental agreement is approved by a qualified and experienced professional in their field.

However : Changes to the law, effective from 30-10-2011, allow a Landlord to issue a notice period of ten days to settle their rental arrears once a judicial notice has been served. if after that time the Tenant has taken no action, then eviction proceedings can begin without the need for any further court action. Click HERE to read more on that news story.