Spain’s Congress has agreed to allow homeowners and tenants in communal buildings to attend neighbourhood (‘comunidad’) meetings via videoconference and receive important correspondence by email, a benefit for foreigners who aren’t always in Spain.
Spain’s Congress this week approved a reform to the country’s Horizontal Property Law to allow meetings of residents’ associations or homeowners’ associations in apartment buildings to be held remotely and not just in person. This was done temporarily during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Neighbourhood meetings are enshrined in Spanish law and are essential for ensuring coexistence between owners and reaching democratic agreements on certain issues.
READ MORE: What to know about community of neighbours’ meetings in Spain
The initiative, which was proposed by the People’s Party (PP), was passed with 306 votes in favour (PP, PSOE, Vox, ERC, PNV, and part of the mixed group), 33 against (Sumar and Junts), and ten abstentions (Bildu and Podemos).
Even though it’s had overwhelming support from Spain’s MPs, it’s not completely a done deal yet, as the legislative text has to go through the entire parliamentary process, face potential amendments and then be approved under a final vote.
The measure aims to modernise horizontal property ownership and also allows the community secretary to send summonses and notifications to owners via email, and not just regular post mail as is the case currently.
Another new feature is that the minutes book could now be kept electronically, not exclusively on paper.
The amendment allows for online meetings while maintaining the ‘hybrid’ format, something that was already in effect during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In this regard, PP deputy Javier Noriega advocated for guaranteeing the rights of “elderly owners who have difficulty with new technologies.”
Even though the parliamentary vote will be beneficial for many homeowners in Spain, among them foreigners who own Spanish homes but are not always present in the country, some politicians have criticised the new digital system.
Basque nationalist PNV deputy Mikel Legarda argued that there is “very limited experience to support the claim that all homeowners’ associations, which comprise 18 million homes in Spain, are prepared for remote voting and attendance.”
MP for Catalan nationalist party Junts Marta Madrenas announced that her party would not support this measure, not only because the Catalan Civil Code already allows for online meetings, but also because the PP’s proposal is not “designed to address very serious problems faced by homeowners’ associations, such as chronic non-payment of fees.”
The ruling Socialists on the other hand were in favour of their main political opponents’ proposal, saying that the PSOE “supports all instruments that may be useful to the public”.
READ ALSO: What to know about being president of your building’s ‘community’ in Spain
