60% rents in Catalonia illegal

A recent report on rentals in Spain found that Catalonia is above average in terms of illegal rentals. A massive 60% of rentals in Catalonia are not declared for taxes, costing the treasury an estimated 740 million Euros in tax losses. The figure - over half of all rentals in the northern peninsula - relates to a figure of 288,166 individual rentals.



The report implies that in Spain overall, there are almost half a million residential leases that are not declared in the annual tax returns, or "declaraciones de la renta", although amazingly, this figure has been reduced by 4.5% compared to last year.

Although various sources have come out to flatten the statistics, the figure is still alarmingly high, and many home owners may not know exactly what they are getting themselves in for. Illegal squatting in Spain as a whole is a huge problem, and in Barcelona recently there have been many cases of people returning from a short break to find their property "occupied" by people unknown to them, with locks changed, and bills still being paid under the owner's name. The current judicial system seems not to favour the home owner at all in these instances, and by all accounts it is a lengthy process to rid your home from unwanted intruders.

Insisting on a legally binding contract for any rental - on both the landlord and person letting a property is always the safest way to guard against anything unsavory happening. Dealing with an established estate agency can also help with any legalities.

Barcelona Real Estate Agents Modus Vivendi have a fantastic portfolio of apartments and Loft Rentals in Barcelona. Don't hesitate to contact them for your rental needs.