Who pays community fees, IBI and rubbish tax

Key rules

• Default: The owner pays community fees, IBI and rubbish tax unless the lease clearly says otherwise.
• Written clause: The tenant pays community fees or IBI only if the lease says so in writing and states the annual amount at signing.
• Building works: Extraordinary charges for works like a new lift or facade stay with the landlord.
• Proof: You can ask for proof of any amount you are charged.

The owner pays by default

If your lease says nothing about community fees, IBI or the rubbish tax, you pay none of them.

When you can be asked to pay

The landlord can pass community fees or IBI to you only through a written clause in the lease. A verbal promise, an email or a later message asking you to start paying does not count.

Before you sign, check that:

• the clause names each cost it passes on (community fees, IBI);
• it gives a yearly figure for each one;
• the figures match what the landlord can show you.

If a cost is not named in the clause, it stays with the landlord. This includes the rubbish tax unless the lease clearly and expressly passes it on with an amount.

Rises during the lease

Your share is limited to what was agreed in writing. A landlord cannot simply announce a higher figure halfway through. Proof of the amounts, such as the community's budget or the IBI bill, is something you are entitled to see.

Building works are the landlord's

Extraordinary charges for building works, such as a new lift or facade repairs, are called a derrama. The landlord owes it as the community member. A lease clause trying to pass a derrama to you is of doubtful validity for a home, so do not accept it without advice. Structural repairs to the property are also the landlord's duty.