Vacation home rental is a more than profitable activity. However, there are many regulatory requirements so that the owners of this type of housing can obtain this high profitability legally.
Among the requirements required by some autonomous communities is that the holiday home to be rented has insurance that includes, at least, civil liability coverage.
Therefore, since Euroteide Insurance We are going to explain why it is convenient to have full home insurance in homes for tourist use, even if it is not mandatory and, incidentally, comment on the minimum requirements that are required for vacation rentals.
What requirements must you meet to rent your holiday home?
Each autonomous community has powers to establish its own regulations, so we will limit ourselves to describing the two requirements that are common to all of them.
Therefore, we recommend knowing exactly all the enforceable requirements that you can find in the published legal texts. in the official gazettes of each autonomous community.
And one more warning, the councils of some towns with a large tourist influx can also force compliance with additional requirements, as is the case of Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca.
What is the vacation rental license?
The tourist or vacation rental license is an authorization issued by the autonomous administration, which specifies the conditions under which said property can be exploited, on a rental basis, as tourist or seasonal accommodation.
Es mandatory its possession and these are the two basic requirements to obtain it:
- Presentation of a responsible declaration before the city council
This declaration must include, among other things:
- The identification data of the owner and the property
- The characteristics and the maximum number of tenants in the dwelling
- The periods of the year in which the property will be rented
The statement must be accompanied by one of the following documents:
- The first occupation license
- The habitability certificate
Once the corresponding fees have been paid, the town hall will issue the license and register it in the Autonomous Tourism Registry.
- Declaration of start of activity before the AEAT (State Tax Administration Agency)
Once the license has been obtained, it is necessary to declare the start of the holiday home rental activity at the Tax Agency. This must be done even when there is no legal obligation to pay the IAE (Economic Activities Tax).
Once the activity has been declared, it is time to rent the house. And if there are already selected tenants, they will be able to occupy the house from that moment on, as long as the property meets all the requirements detailed in the license.
Civil liability insurance is mandatory only in certain autonomous communities
El liability insurance protects the owner against possible damage suffered by third parties and whose origin is in the home itself, whether or not they are tenants of the property.
In the case of holiday homes, this insurance is only mandatory in some autonomous communities, but in Euroteide Insurance We always recommend your hiring. Later we will explain why.
Tips to manage your holiday home well
Homeowners who want to cover their ass will do well to keep the following tips and warnings in mind:
Beware of breaches and especially with license deficiencies
The authorities have made their intentions very clear that the regulations on tourist accommodation are strictly complied with.
In this sense, the means have been enabled to track flats that are rented irregularly, something relatively simple if the owners use the rental and shared flat platforms.
The economic sanctions can become stratospheric and vary according to the autonomous community.
As a guide, the amount of fines for non-compliance or lack of a license ranges from 150 euros for a minor offense in Andalusia to 600 euros imposed in Barcelona for serious or repeated infractions.
Another notable case is that of Madrid, with a minimum penalty of 3000 euros and a maximum of 300 euros.
And the Canary Islands are not far behind: minor breaches are penalized with fines of up to 1500 euros and serious ones can be sanctioned with up to 300 euros.
Caution with vacation rental platforms
Some people think that to rent a home for tourist use it is enough to put an ad on a specialized platform and wait for the offers to rain down, with hardly any costs.
This is not always the case: compared to the advantage of their low operating cost, these platforms do not stand out for specially selecting tenants, thus increases the risk of damage or vandalism.
Insurance, a shield for the owner
En este sentido, Hiring comprehensive home insurance will protect the landlord in such situations, including liability coverage.
And it should not be forgotten that the owner can incur economic and criminal responsibilities, in the event of a serious accident or death of a tenant inside the vacation home.
As an example, let's take the case of a fire with victims or an electrocution whose origins are in a deficiency in the electrical installation.
Real estate professionals, an additional guarantee
Although at first glance it may seem like a simple procedure, the truth is that registering a vacation home and keeping it in order can be a real labyrinth for those owners who are not used to dealing with administration.
Our final advice to homeowners of this type of home is to avoid regulatory violations, potential penalties, and even license revocations, apply for professional advice in a real estate agency in your area that specializes in this type of lease.
In addition, a good real estate agency will be in charge of carrying out a filtering process, selecting the most reliable and solvent clients.
And if the property to be rented is located in Tenerife or in any of the Canary Islands, no one better than Euroteide Seguros advisers so that the landlord formalizes a home policy that, at a good price, covers any possible accident or contingency.