Want To Rent An Apartment In Barcelona? Here Is What You Need To Know.

One of the biggest concerns of non-residents who want find an apartment in Barcelona is how to understand the basic requirements to sign a rental contract for their home.

Here are some of the basics.

Do I have to sign the contract in writing?
As a general rule of thumb for any type of contract – and what we advise – is that the contract should be in writing to avoid later problems.
It is very important that the following information is included in the document:

• Identification of the landlord (it must be the owner or his legal representative who must demonstrate the representation) and the tenant with their updated and real data.
• Identification of the rented home so that no doubts arise
• Agreed duration of the rental.
• Initial rent of the contract and the expenses to be paid by the tenant
• All other clauses that the parties have freely agreed upon.

It is advised that the document, once read and -we see that it complies to what we have agreed with the landlord – will be signed on all the pages, by the landlord (owner of the apartment or his legal representative who has to show us the representation) and by us as tenants.

Should I do any checks on the home before signing the contract?

We advise YES. As a minimum, it is advisable to visit the house and check its state of conservation and operation of the elements of the house.
We advise to reflect in the contract all those non-invalidating anomalies (as these have to be corrected by the owner) that we observe in walls, ceilings, doors, installations or furniture to avoid future claims by the property when the contract is finished.

We advise that if the house is rented furnished, make a detailed inventory of all the furniture that is rented with the house so that there is no doubt about its characteristics. We advise you to review the brand and model of electrical appliances and electronic devices as well as to check their good working order prior to signing the contract.If possible, photos of both the state of conservation and the existing furniture could be attached.

How long should the contract be? .-

ByMonths ONLY rents apartments for seasonal rental. That means that the contract minimum is of 32 nights and the maximum is of 11 months. There are, however also longterm contracts offered in Barcelona. Those contracts have the duration that is the one agreed by the parties and must be specified in the contract, as of the entry into force of the reform of 6.03.2019, the duration of the housing lease contracts will be 5 years (7 years if a company or legal person rents the house to us).

However, if a period of less than 5 years has been agreed in the contract, we must also know that as a tenant, once the term we agreed upon ends, we can extend the contract for annual terms until the lease reaches a minimum duration of five years, or seven years if the landlord is a legal entity, unless at any time we notify the landlord, at least thirty days in advance of the date of termination of the contract or any of the extensions, that we do not want to continue with the lease.

You should also know that in the latter case, when the five-year contract ends, if you do not want to continue with the lease, you must notify at least two months in advance of your desire not to renew it or the contract will be obligatorily extended for annual terms up to a maximum three more years, unless before the end of any of the annuities you communicate a month in advance that you do not want to renew the contract.

What is the rent?

The rent is the rental price and is the one agreed between the landlord and tenant. Unless you agree otherwise, the rent is paid per month and the advance payment of more than one monthly rent cannot be required.

This income, provided that it is agreed in the contract, may be subject to review each year taking into account that the update percentage may not exceed the result of applying the percentage variation experienced by the Consumer Price Index on the date of each update.

To pay, it is advisable to direct the payment to the landlord’s account and thus avoid problems.

In addition to the rental price, as a tenant, you may be obliged to pay separately, as long as they are agreed in the contract:

The expenses of community of owners, if you have them.
Taxes that affect housing.

Do I have to pay something else apart from the rent and the expenses that we agree on?

Yes. Apart from the rent and agreed expenses, it is an obligation