Apartment utilities

If all of the 4 apartments that are paying their fees opted to pay the lower amount; presumably the amount collected would not cover the various bills/costs of running the block etc.

It would appear the decision to increase fees back whenever that happened was the prudent thing to do so as to ensure the community doesn't run out of money as you can't pay the bills with the non-existent money from the 2 non-paying apartments even if they show as owing the community the money in the accounts

In terms of pursuing the other owners for non-payment/"repossession", I'd imagine the cheap options have been tried and so you'd need to decide whether you wish to progress more expensive options to try and force their hand. However, the 4 paying apartments would presumably have to stump up the costs to do this in the first place. Thankfully, this is not something our community has experienced so I've no insight to offer.

It's bad when people don't pay their dues but bills have to be paid no matter what. Our fees went up to cover costs but we are owed over 50,000 euro in unpaid community fees. The lawyers have been chasing them for a long time and eventually got permission to go through the courts in their own country (UK, Iceland, Netherlands for just 3 of them) but we aren't paying. They came to our last AGM and the costs, including lawyer and court fees, will be added to the amount they owe.

Trouble is, this has been going on for 6 years and we have borne the brunt for that long. If the bills weren't paid, they would cut off the electricity and water supplies which they did at the very beginning of us moving here some 17 years ago when bills were being paid late. No street lighting, no pools or showers and so on.

Thank you George55 and marcliff for your informed responses greatly appreciated. Look like we are stuck in a poor situation until the banks repossess the apts although I believe they're in no hurry as they'll be liable for the back fees.

Again thank you for the response 

Best regards Binz 

As the world is going on about AI and I'm slowly coming round to its uses (especially in consolidating information from multiple sources), here are some notes from some specific questions when I asked some questions of ChatGPT.

I can't confirm the validity of anything that has been stated below as they're the words of ChatGPT but I'd be making sure that you don't let any debts expire per point 4:

What Can the Community of Owners Do if an Owner Doesn't Pay?

1. Initiate Legal Action – "Monitorio" Court Process

The community can file a "proceso monitorio" (a fast-track legal procedure) to recover the debt.

To do this, they only need a certificate of the unpaid amount, signed by the secretary and approved by the president of the community.

•  No prior warning is required since a 2022 legal reform.

•  Interest accrues from the due date of the unpaid fees.

This is the most common and efficient way to claim debts from owners.

2. Seizure of Assets or Property Auction

If the owner still doesn’t pay after a court ruling, the community can:

•  Request embargo (seizure) of the owner's bank accounts, salary, or other assets.

•  Ultimately, request a forced public auction of the property if the debt is substantial and remains unpaid.

3. Suspend Voting Rights and Use of Facilities

According to the Spanish Horizontal Property Law (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal):

•  A debtor loses the right to vote in owners’ meetings.

•  The community can also restrict access to non-essential common areas, like swimming pools or gyms.

4. Debt Expiry – Statute of Limitations

Unpaid community debts expire after 5 years unless the community takes formal action to stop the time limit (e.g., by sending a registered letter or filing a claim).

So, the community can only legally recover debts from the last 5 years.

5. Liability in Case of Property Sale

If the property is sold, the new owner becomes liable for:

•  Unpaid community fees for the current year and the 3 previous calendar years.

Before the sale, the seller must provide a debt certificate showing any outstanding fees.

Unfortunately  this is what happens we have debtors in our community and it is going through the banks one or two have been repossessed but most on going its taking years and the rest of the owners paying the difference. Its a very slow proces for some reason,

Thanks socym just really annoying and seems so unfair but totally realistic about bills having to be paid to maintain standards 👍

Best regards Binz