Comunidad de Propietarios (Owners' Association) — in depth

*Horizontal property law (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal) in detail: resolutions & majorities, reserve funds, defaulting owners, refurbishments — and what buyers of an apartment need to watch out for.*

Legend: ✅ confirmed/statutory text · 🟡 check the detail · 🔴 uncertain. Basis: Ley 49/1960 (LPH), amended among others by Ley 8/2013, Ley 10/2022 and the reform of Art. 17.12 effective 3.4.2025.

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Fundamentals#

• The comunidad de propietarios arises by operation of law (ex lege) with the título constitutivo;

it has partial legal capacity (can sue, hold accounts/NIF) 🟡.

• elementos comunes (foundation, façade, roof, stairwell, lift, pool, garden) vs.

elementos privativos (the apartment). In Mallorca developments, pool/garden/access are usually common property → maintenance/refurbishment levies concern every buyer.

• The cuota de participación (Art. 5) = co-ownership share → determines cost share + voting weight;

changing it generally requires unanimity (→ 17).

Bodies & Junta#

• The presidente (from among the owners, the office is mandatory, ~1 year), the secretario,

the administrador de fincas (Art. 20; no mandatory professional-body membership, but colegiado = liability insurance 🟡).

• The junta ordinaria meets ≥ 1×/year (budget/accounts); the extraordinaria as needed. Notice

≥ 6 days in advance; a meeting can also be convened by 25 % of the owners/shares.

• Quorum: 1st convocation a majority of owners + shares; 2nd convocation without a quorum (those present).
• The acta (minutes) within 5 days (Art. 19), entered into the libro de actas.

Majorities (Art. 17 LPH) ✅#

Majority	Cases
Unanimity	amending the título/estatutos, the cuota
3/5 (heads + shares)	lift, porter, surveillance; ETV ban/restriction (Art. 17.12)
1/3	telecommunications, renewable energy
simple majority	everything else + normas de régimen interno

🟡 For qualified majorities, the vote of absent owners counts as yes if they do not object within 30 days.

Costs, reserve fund & levies (Art. 9) ✅#

• gastos de comunidad according to the cuota; a fondo de reserva is mandatory at ≥ 10 % of the budget

(raised from 5 % by Ley 10/2022; usable also for energy efficiency/accessibility).

• A derrama = special levy (e.g. façade, pool). 🟡 **Approved but not yet due

derramas often do NOT appear in the debt certificate** → a central purchase risk.

Defaulting owners (morosos)#

• Loss of voting rights (Art. 15.2): anyone with due debts may speak but may not vote

(provided the notice contained the list of defaulters). ✅

• The monitorio especial (Art. 21) for recovery.
• afección real (Art. 9.1.e): The buyer is liable with the property for community debts of the

current + 3 preceding years („3+1") (→ 05).

Refurbishments & accessibility (Art. 10)#

• obras necesarias (structure/habitability/safety): mandatory without a resolution.
• Accessibility: mandatory on request where residents with a disability or aged > 70 live

there and the annual levy does not exceed 12 monthly contributions (or subsidies ≥ 75 %). ✅

Estatutos vs. house rules ✅#

	estatutos	normas de régimen interno
Amendment	Unanimity	simple majority
Land register	registrable (binds buyers)	not registrable

Only estatutos entered in the land register (e.g. an ETV ban) bind the buyer automatically.

Challenge (Art. 18) & holiday rental#

• impugnación deadlines: 3 months (challengeable) or 1 year (breach of law/statutes);

void resolutions: no deadline. These are limitation periods (caducidad).

• ETV within the community: a ban by 3/5 majority is possible — STS 1232 & 1233/2024 ✅

(→ 11); since 3.4.2025 tourist use requires the express consent of the community. Plus the Balearic Contención decree (16.4.2025): no new ETV in plurifamiliar 🟡.

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Buyer due diligence ✅#

1. certificado de deudas (Art. 9.1.e) — mandatory for notarisation; caution: not-yet-due derramas may be missing 2. actas of the last meetings (upcoming refurbishments/conflicts) 3. estatutos (ETV/use bans) 4. budget + reserve fund 5. afección real (3+1).

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❓ FAQ#

Does a ban on ETV in the community require unanimity? No — a 3/5 majority suffices (STS 1232/2024).

How high is the mandatory reserve fund? At least 10 % of the last ordinary budget (since Ley 10/2022).

Am I liable for the previous owner's debts? The property is liable via the afección real for the current + 3 preceding years — which is why you should request the debt certificate.

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Sources (selection)#

• Ley 49/1960 (LPH), Art. 5/9/10/13/15/16/17/18/20/21 · Ley 10/2022 (10 % reserve fund)
• STS 1232 & 1233/2024 (Art. 17.12) → ch. 23 · idealista/Sepín/Iberley (procedure)