Neighbour has rented out our property abroad without permission!

"A Guide to Renting in Spain | Compare My Move" https://www.comparemymove.com/international-removals/removals-to-spain/renting-in-spain

Interesting

@hasSpanishlawbeenbroken I have to agree my sympathy is with the renters. Just hoping the place is still in good repair.

We've all read of Brits being broken by squatters never mind renters and Spanish law and walking away from their homes.

I'm speaking as a UK landlord.

It seems to me the people least likely to have broken the law in this scenario are the renters, who presumably rented the flat out in good faith and might well have nowhere else to go at short notice.

It also sounds as if the law will be on their side.

It sounds most likely the neighbour has broken the law, by renting the flat out long term, but you'd need to prove that was against the original agreement and if he's also been doing things like paying taxes / utilities I think it will be difficult. It will probably be quite easy for the neighbour to argue he was confused about what was allowed.

The OP's Dad may also have broken the law by not setting up rentals as required and not having the relevant checks / registrations in place or an agent with a legal contract. As property owner, that really falls to him, not the neighbour (if the neighbour has done all of this that will be good but we don't know that).

The good thing about this is that it's not really in the neighbour's interests to alert the authorities. However, it will be in the renters interests to do so if they have been deceived and are threatened with losing their home without adequate notice / in breach of contract. Presumably they have no knowledge that a British family might want to use the flat for a holiday at some point.

The best outcome will be amicable - the renters are given notice that at the end of the rental term the property owner wants the property back and leave then without fuss, the neighbour gets renumeration for his trouble so far and so that he'll walk away and not cause trouble and you get the keys back and either get a professional management company to run it or only use it for yourselves or friends you personally give keys to.

Going in all guns blazing and assuming the law will be in line with your holiday wants and casual (possibly illegal) rental set up I suspect will end really, really badly for the OP's Dad.

It's not confusing.

OPs father has (in the past) received cash from the neighbour when he goes over there. The money is from the neighbour renting out the property from time to time as a holiday let (with agreement from OPs Dad - but presumably none of the legal obligations satisfied)

OPs father has not been there for several years so hasn't received any cash.

It now transpires that the neighbour in Spain has let the property long term.

OPs father now wants to visit his own property but has been told he can't because it is rented out long-term.

The neighbour didn't have authority to do this, and no money has been handed over to the OPs father as he wasn't even aware that a long let had been agreed.

It's confusing.

Where did your dad think the cash was coming from?

I just cannot understand how alarm bells weren't ringing with all of you who knew about this "arrangement". This was an accident waiting to happen, and before anyone says 'this isn't helpful' - it needs saying. This is not letting somebody borrow your pushbike for a week - it's a property, for heaven's sake, and one in a foreign country, where laws are different, and without any legal agreement even! Did it really not occur to anyone that this was not going to end well? Did it really not occur to anyone that this guy was letting the property and probably trousering the money?

Edited for typos

Who has been paying the utilities & property taxes etc over the time of the neighbour looking ofter the property?
Someone from your family may need to travel out there, to find out exactly what's going on.

@unsurebut to be honest, you knew your father had a house so why didnt you or your siblings organise a proper management company to deal with it when your dad fell ill, instead of leaving it up to your neighbour? you have practically given him free reign to do what he wishes with regard to renting it out. you have no proof of the rental he has been paid or how much he has conned your father!

Linked on page 9 or 10

Someone linked it on page 10

Not sure why you’re quoting me but it’s general advice. If your renting out at all for cash as he was you need a rental licence .

Read the thread!
Father wasn’t even aware it was rented out other than occasional weeks to the neighbours friends and family.

Thanks for the link I'll check it out

As someone else pointed out Spanish law is very different. As the people in the property have probably got a contract and have been paying rent they have rights and I'm pretty sure you can't kick them out. You need to contact a Spanish lawyer immediately and tell them exactly what has happened.

I’m sorry to tell you that the neighbour has done a number on your dad here,

Well it certainly seems that there will be times that it has been rented out for that OP's dad knows nothing about (including this one!)

Unfortunately Op's dad started the arrangement & unless there's anything in writing it might be hard to prove how often the neighbour was allowed to rent the property out for.

You really can't trust anyone anymore can you?

Yes we've considered it but my Dad is elderly and afraid of any possible violent/threatening repercussions, sadly.

@diddl The neighbour had keys to the house as he would clean the pool and check on the house to make sure everything was ok (which my Dad paid him to do). Neighbour obviously was in cahoots with the guy who has stolen the house and must have got a payment from him!

Has your dad considered renting it via Airbnb himself, and then just changing the locks back?

In your situation OP I'd be really worried my Dad had (inadvertently) broken Spanish law, not be worrying about a holiday.

What about if the tenants have kids? Their life should be upended because of lack of communication and proper organisation between the OP's Dad and his neighbour?

Unbelievable.

It sounds like their tenancy is until January - if so, then it seems most reasonable to give notice it will not be extended at that point. And use the rental income to rent a flat for a holiday. And hope that the neighbour hasn't promised any more to these tenants.

Leaving everything in the hands of the neighbour with no proper legal advice nor communication in writing about what was and what was not allowed was a really bad idea and a big mistake, the OP's Dad's mistake, everything else comes from that.

I do not see why innocent people should be kicked out of their home because of that - and as many PP have said this is likely illegal in Spain. I can imagine the authorities will really love a British family trying to kick Spaniards out of what presumably they think is a legally rented flat - quite possibly their only home - so that the Brits can have a holiday whenever they want. Especially given it was the failure to seek appropriate legal advice and set up rentals professionally that resulted in this situation.

So the neighbour has been making money out of renting the house out, which will cover the costs (and more) of any DIY he may have helped with.

Your father should go anyway, perhaps with someone to support him.

I'd tell the neighbour that you will be calling the police if it's not empty when he gets there.

Tell the neighbour you also need to look into the tax implications of him letting out your property without permission. This may worry him as I doubt he's been declaring the rent!

Get the locks changed!!!!!

But he has been pocketing the rental money, unless he has a stack of cash to hand over to him now the OP has said her dad hasn’t had any money off him for years as he’s not been over.

I feel quite sorry for the tenants if long term. After all, if it is long term tenants there it's their home, they probably don't know anything about this history and face someone wanting to kick them out for a holiday! I think it's quite right they should have protection in law. It's not their fault the OP's Dad and neighbour didn't set everything up properly.