Community
Law Corner:
Article 22
Community Obligations to the Elderly and Disabled
by José Luis Navarro www.intercala.com
The Solicitor and Property Administrator for Intercala Administration
and
Pete Woodall (Woody's Los Boliches)
This article first appeared in the Euro Weekly News, Costa del Sol Edition March 2013
Community Obligations to the Elderly and Disabled
Everyone probably realises that the average age of the population is on the increase but owners may not realise
there are legally binding consequences of this for their communities. One that many owners may not be familiar with
is the legal procedure to remove what are termed as “ architectural barriers”. The removal of obstructions
that present a problem for the elderly or disabled within their community or even that there is such an obligation,
who gets to pay for it and under what circumstances.
Spanish Law says “suppression of architectural barriers” will come under the special regulation 51/03 for disabled people if the main beneficiary of the work to be undertaken is over 70 years of age or is a recognized disabled person
with a 33% incapacity or more.
If an eligible elderly or disabled member of a community requests to have an obstacle removed or modified
then the Law of Horizontal Property regulates the situation. A common example of the “suppression of architectural barriers” is where a ramp is installed to remove the problem of stairs. Firstly under the law,
any such work has to be approved at a general meeting of owners. If there is disagreement and a owner considers that it is not appropriate then the approval can be contested in court as per Article 10.4.
Article. 11.3 says if the cost of the work requires a payment from each owner for an amount that is equal to less than three times that of their normal monthly community fees, then a simple majority vote at a general meeting is enough to approve the work and all the owners will have to pay, regardless of whether they voted for or against.
Article 17.1 When the cost for the work to each owner is more than three monthly payments and if the agreement to do the work is approved by more than 50% of the owners, who collectively own more than 50% of the community then again, all owners have to pay for the cost of the work, regardless of whether they voted for or against.
However, when the cost for the work to each owner is more than three normal monthly community payments but the agreement is not approved by more than 50% of all the owners, who collectively own more than 50% of the community, then the cost of the work falls only to those who want the work to be done.
To calculate the above percentages properly, the vote will reflect the owners and their percentage ownership who were absent and therefore did not vote at the meeting, unless of course by proxy, as an automatically “ in favour “ vote, supposing the majority of the meeting is also in favour. Once informed of this, absent owners have only thirty calendar days to register their disagreement and change the vote. If it then falls below 50% but is more than three monthly contributions then only owners supporting the changes will pay.
In a situation with relatively low costs then this is quite straight forward but when costs go up, say a request for the installation of a lift or lifts, then take into consideration how complicated and expensive this matter could be.
As always we the lawyers for Intercala Community Administration strongly recommend you seek out competent legal advice in all matters regarding the law in Spain.
Community Obligations to the Elderly and Disabled
by José Luis Navarro www.intercala.com
The Solicitor and Property Administrator for Intercala Administration
and
Pete Woodall (Woody's Los Boliches)
This article first appeared in the Euro Weekly News, Costa del Sol Edition March 2013
Community Obligations to the Elderly and Disabled
Everyone probably realises that the average age of the population is on the increase but owners may not realise
there are legally binding consequences of this for their communities. One that many owners may not be familiar with
is the legal procedure to remove what are termed as “ architectural barriers”. The removal of obstructions
that present a problem for the elderly or disabled within their community or even that there is such an obligation,
who gets to pay for it and under what circumstances.
Spanish Law says “suppression of architectural barriers” will come under the special regulation 51/03 for disabled people if the main beneficiary of the work to be undertaken is over 70 years of age or is a recognized disabled person
with a 33% incapacity or more.
If an eligible elderly or disabled member of a community requests to have an obstacle removed or modified
then the Law of Horizontal Property regulates the situation. A common example of the “suppression of architectural barriers” is where a ramp is installed to remove the problem of stairs. Firstly under the law,
any such work has to be approved at a general meeting of owners. If there is disagreement and a owner considers that it is not appropriate then the approval can be contested in court as per Article 10.4.
Article. 11.3 says if the cost of the work requires a payment from each owner for an amount that is equal to less than three times that of their normal monthly community fees, then a simple majority vote at a general meeting is enough to approve the work and all the owners will have to pay, regardless of whether they voted for or against.
Article 17.1 When the cost for the work to each owner is more than three monthly payments and if the agreement to do the work is approved by more than 50% of the owners, who collectively own more than 50% of the community then again, all owners have to pay for the cost of the work, regardless of whether they voted for or against.
However, when the cost for the work to each owner is more than three normal monthly community payments but the agreement is not approved by more than 50% of all the owners, who collectively own more than 50% of the community, then the cost of the work falls only to those who want the work to be done.
To calculate the above percentages properly, the vote will reflect the owners and their percentage ownership who were absent and therefore did not vote at the meeting, unless of course by proxy, as an automatically “ in favour “ vote, supposing the majority of the meeting is also in favour. Once informed of this, absent owners have only thirty calendar days to register their disagreement and change the vote. If it then falls below 50% but is more than three monthly contributions then only owners supporting the changes will pay.
In a situation with relatively low costs then this is quite straight forward but when costs go up, say a request for the installation of a lift or lifts, then take into consideration how complicated and expensive this matter could be.
As always we the lawyers for Intercala Community Administration strongly recommend you seek out competent legal advice in all matters regarding the law in Spain.