Who owns what?

Property Spain own

Q.- Our response to the question of apartment block v. townhouse community was incomplete. Our questioner understands that the apartment holders collectively own their block and the townhouse owners independently own their freeholds. So why must they contribute to the apartment repairs?

D.S. (Costa del Sol)

A.- In fact the apartment owners also own their individual apartments as freehold, and the community owns all the elements outside the walls, such as balconies. It is the same for the townhouses.

Your individual garden areas are actually owned by the community. The apartment terraces and the townhouse gardens appear on your title deeds but in fact you have only “exclusive use”. So the townhouses and the apartment block are under one community.

The Law of Horizontal Property specifies that community expenses shall be paid according to the cuotas or percentage shares of each owner. Because the townhouses are larger their shares are larger.

If the expense is unusually large and applies mostly to the apartment block the townhouse owners are still legally obligated to pay even if they do not benefit. This is clearly unfair to the townhouse owners and should be discussed at the AGM.

Send your questions for David Searl through lawyers Ubeda-Retana and Associates in Fuengirola at Ask@lawtaxspain.com, or call 952 667 090

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David Searl

You and the law in spain Send your questions for David Searl through lawyers Ubeda-Retana and Associates in Fuengirola at Ask@lawtaxspain.com, or call 952 667 090.

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