Alex Trelinski
SPAIN’S Supreme Court has ruled that a community of home owners can prohibit tourist flats so long as at least three-fifths of them back such a measure.
The judges had previously supported owners stopping tourist accommodation but the new ruling qualifies what majority they need.
The bench studied various cases from communities including one in Marbella dating back to 2019 over nuisance being caused to residents.
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The community president said there was ‘noise, destruction, theft, the smell of marijuana, urine and stains’, adding that it was an ‘abuse’ that some owners were using their homes commercially for tourism.
A vote was taken and a ban was approved by 48 votes to just three.
Two companies that owned six tourist apartments then took the case to court.
The Supreme Court confirmed, as in previous rulings, that communities of owners have the right to prohibit the presence of tourist flats by law, as it is a commercial activity.
“Preventing the use for tourist rental constitutes a prohibition, which is legitimate,” they explained in their new ruling.
They added details of a required majority which should be three-fifths of the total number of owners.
The bench said such a majority to introduce a ban is proportionate.
The judges highlighted the ‘social reality’ in areas with high tourism numbers and where ‘leisure is difficult to reconcile with the rest of the occupants of the homes’.
