Although the Horizontal Property Law is in charge of regulating the obligations of the owners with their community of neighbors, such as the need to consult with them if they want to rent the home for non-residential use, it is the Urban Leases Law that is in charge of establishing the obligations and rights of both landlords and tenants.
Despite this, conflicts between owners and tenants are quite common, especially when the former refuse to take responsibility for different issues related to housing. One of these problems usually arises when some element of the property breaks, due to wear and tear, and the landlord refuses to cover the repair costs.
In this case and as explained by Alberto Sánchez, a lawyer specialized in real estate and leasing law, the law is not on the owner’s side. Specifically, it applies article 21.1 of the LAU, on the conservation of housingwhich specifies that “the landlord is obliged to carry out all the repairs that are necessary to keep the home in habitable conditions.”
The landlord will not be able to raise the rent to cover the repairs
Likewise, as you remember, this article also provides that the fact that the owner bears the costs of the repairs should not lead to an increase in the rent. And, according to the second section, in the event that the works have a duration of more than 20 days, “income will have to be reduced in proportion to the part of the home of which the tenant is deprived”.
However, just as the owner has the obligation to maintain the home in habitable conditions, the tenant, in turn, must maintain the property in the conditions in which it was received and take responsibility for any damages that have been caused by misuse or those that are considered small repairs motivated by “wear and tear from ordinary use of the home“, according to article 21.4.
Following the provisions, the owner will be responsible for those works that must be carried out to guarantee the maintenance of the floor, walls and ceilings, as well as those related to electricity and water installations. In the case of appliances, when they were already in the home when it was rented and have stopped working due to age, Its replacement must be the responsibility of the lessor.
Damage that must be repaired by the tenant
On the other hand, regarding the repairs that are the responsibility of the tenants, these are those that are required due to misuse of the home. The most common are usually: having to cover holes made in the walls to be able to place an element or decoration, painting the walls due to bumps or stains or changing furniture that has been broken during use. As for appliances, their replacement only will be the responsibility of the lessee when the damages are due to misuse of these.
“In addition, this applies regardless of what the contract says. The law is above,” says the lawyer. Despite this, the best thing to do when an owner refuses to take care of repairs is to review the provisions of the contract, consult the local legislation regarding rentals and collect evidence of the damage to the home and its notification to the landlord. With this information you can go to a specialized lawyer to receive legal advice.
However, to avoid this type of conflict, Alberto Sánchez advises that you review the rental contract before signing it, looking for “clauses that completely exonerate the owner’s responsibility regarding habitability” and discuss in advance with the owner who will be responsible for the repairs and under what conditions. Likewise, when the property presents damages, these must be communicate using formal letter templates and set a deadline for its repair.