In January 2025, Decree-Law 1/2025, of 28 January, on urgent measures regarding rent control, came into force. It establishes a sanctions regime for non-compliance with advertising or contractual conditions as set out in the Catalonia Housing Law of 28.12.2007.
The press and industry professionals have highlighted it due to the high penalties it imposes, which can reach up to €900,000.
The URGENT nature of this Decree-Law is that it grants a period of 5 days, until Monday, 3 February 2025, to adapt rental property advertisements and offers—whether or not they are located in a designated tight residential market area (ZMRT) of Catalonia (171 municipalities, covering almost the entire region)—to the requirements of this new regulation. Let’s take a look:
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If the property is located in a ZMRT, the advertised price must reflect the rental price derived from applying the official rental price reference system or, where applicable, the price of the previous rental contract. Simply publishing the reference index is no longer sufficient.
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If the property has been previously rented, the last rental price from a lease agreement in force within the past five years for the same dwelling must be published, or, where applicable, the rental price determined by applying the official rental price reference system. This must be justified by an official certificate obtained through the public consultation system established by the competent authority.
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The status of the landlord as a large property owner must be stated if the property is located in a ZMRT.
All the above details must also be included in the rental contract. In the case of properties in a ZMRT, the contract must explicitly state its purpose.
January 2025.
