What is changing in seasonal and room rental law

Key rules

• Agency fees: On main-home leases, the landlord pays agency and contract-formalisation fees, not you.
• Seasonal and room rentals: The 2023 law did not directly regulate them, so do not assume its protections apply.
• Short-term registry: Since 1 July 2025, short-term rental listings need a registration number.
• Rent caps: Caps apply only in declared stressed zones.

The short version

The big 2023 housing law did not directly regulate seasonal or room rentals. Most of its tenant protections apply to contracts for a main home. A national registration rule for short-term rentals started on 1 July 2025. Rules for seasonal rentals have been debated in Congress, and you should check whether they have passed.

The 2023 housing law (in force since 26 May 2023)

The law was published on 25 May 2023 and came into force the next day. Its main rental changes:

• Stressed zones. Regions can ask for an area to be declared a "zona tensionada", and the Ministry declares it. In these zones, a new lease cannot exceed the rent of the last lease in force in the previous 5 years, updated only by the annual cap index. Small extras are allowed for recent works or for leases over 10 years. Large landlords face tighter limits.
• A new update index. A new rent-update index replaces the old one tied to consumer prices.
• Agency fees. Since May 2023, on leases of a main home, the landlord pays the agency and contract-formalisation fees. You cannot be charged them.
• Lease length. The minimum lease term is seven years if the landlord is a company, and five years if the landlord is an individual. In declared stressed zones, you can ask for yearly extensions of up to three years once the minimum term ends.

The caps apply only in declared zones. At the time of writing these include parts of Catalonia, Navarra, the Basque Country and Galicia. Ask your town hall whether your area is declared.

What this means for seasonal and room contracts

Because the law did not directly cover seasonal or room rentals, you should not assume the cap or the agency-fee rule protects you. A "seasonal" contract is meant for a real temporary purpose, such as work or study for a set period. If a landlord calls a contract seasonal when you plan to live there as your home, you may have fewer protections than you expect. Ask for the real reason for the seasonal label to be written in the contract.

Later measures

• December 2024. A decree-law tried to extend housing measures, but it was voted down in January 2025.
• 2024–2025. The rent cap and the update index (IRAV) came from the laws of these years.
• 2025 proposal on seasonal rentals. It would require a declaration that the seasonal purpose is real. Reforms of seasonal rentals were still being debated in Congress, so check whether they have passed before you sign.

Short-term rental registry (since 1 July 2025)

A national registry of short-term rentals is in force. Listings now need a registration number. This mainly affects tourist-style stays. If a landlord offers you a short stay, ask for the number.

What to do

1. Ask whether the home is in a declared stressed zone.
2. Ask the landlord to state the seasonal purpose in the contract, and make sure it is true.
3. Check with your town hall or a tenants' association for the current rules before you pay a deposit.