The Honest Let: five rules for renting long term in Spain

Renting long term on the Costa del Sol should be simple. In practice, many "long-term" ads end in June, ask for half a year's rent up front, or add a fee the law says the tenant should not pay. The Honest Let is our standard: five rules every home we offer must meet. Below, we explain each one in plain words, with the Spanish law behind it, checked against the official text on 8 October 2026.

Good to know: Spain changed its rental law with an emergency decree that took effect on 8 October 2026 (Real Decreto-ley 29/2026). Parliament must vote on a decree-law within 30 days (Constitution, art. 86). If it votes no, the earlier rules return. Where a point depends on that decree, we say so. Check the current text of the law on BOE before you sign.

The five rules at a glance

1. A real home lease

Every home we offer is let on a home lease (arrendamiento de vivienda habitual), agreed for at least 12 months. You can register at that address on the padrón, the town hall's list of residents. Everyone who lives in Spain must register in the town where they usually live (Ley 7/1985, art. 15), and you need it for school places and the health centre.

Home lease or temporary lease?

Spanish rental law (the LAU) now has two kinds of lease for a home:

• Home lease (vivienda habitual). For your main home: a lease whose main purpose is to meet the tenant's need for a home (LAU art. 2). It gives the strongest protection: years of security, a cap on money up front, and no agency fee.
• Temporary lease (vivienda temporal, still often called temporada or seasonal). For a stay away from your main home for a real reason, for example a work posting or a course of study. Since 8 October 2026 the contract must state that reason, the reason must be real and provable, and it is the landlord who has to prove it (LAU art. 7.2). It must last more than 31 days and, as a general rule, no more than 12 months (art. 9 bis).

If a temporary contract does not state a valid reason, the law now treats it as a home lease from the day it was signed. The same applies if it runs past 12 months without justification, or if more than two temporary contracts follow each other for the same home and the same tenant.

Good to know: Seasonal contracts signed before 8 October 2026 keep their old rules until their end date, and then end with no right to extend. If one is renewed, the renewal follows the new rules for temporary leases (LAU, transitional provision 8).

The September to June trap

On this coast, many ads say "long term" but end in June. They are school-year lets: September to June, and then the owner takes the home back for summer holiday rentals. For a family moving here, that means:

• you must move out in June, when rents are highest and the fewest homes are free;
• you have no right to stay on;
• you lose the protections of a home lease described on this page.

If the home will be your family's main home, a temporary contract does not fit. The new rules may treat it as a home lease anyway, but getting that recognised can mean a dispute or even court. It is simpler to sign the right contract from the start. We offer a temporary lease only when your stay really is temporary, and we label it clearly.

How long you can stay

On a home lease, you decide how long to stay, within these rules:

• Up to 5 years at your option. If the lease is agreed for less than 5 years (7 if the landlord is a company), it renews every year until it reaches 5 or 7. You can stop it at any renewal with at least 30 days' notice before the end date (LAU art. 9).
• Then year by year. After 5 or 7 years, if neither side gives notice (the landlord 4 months ahead, you 2 months ahead), the lease renews year by year for up to 3 more years. This is the tacit extension, or prórroga tácita (art. 10).
• Leaving early. You can leave once 6 months have passed, with at least 30 days' notice. In writing is safest (art. 11). For leases signed from 8 October 2026, the law says the landlord cannot charge you compensation for this. Older leases may include a penalty of up to one month's rent for each year left. Check your contract.
• When the owner needs the home. A landlord who is an individual, not a company, can take the home back after the first year, for themselves or close family, only if the contract said so at signing, and with at least 2 months' notice (art. 9.3).

Good to know: A second decree, Real Decreto-ley 28/2026, would change what happens after year 5 from 15 November 2026, with longer renewals and, in many cases, compensation when the landlord ends the lease. It also needs parliament's approval, so check its status.

2. Never more than 4 months at signing

On a home lease, the law limits what a landlord can ask for when you sign:

• Rent in advance: one month at most. The landlord cannot demand more (LAU art. 17.2).
• Deposit (fianza): one month's rent, paid in money (art. 36.1).
• Additional guarantee (garantía adicional): optional. On leases of up to 5 years (7 if the landlord is a company), it cannot be more than two months' rent (art. 36.5). It can be cash or a bank guarantee (aval).

That makes four months at most. Here is a worked example for a home at €2,400 a month:

If you pay a holding deposit to reserve a home, get it in writing and make sure it counts towards the money due at signing.

When the numbers are different

• Leases agreed for more than 5 years (7 with a company landlord). The two-month cap on the additional guarantee does not apply. Ask a lawyer before you agree to a large guarantee on a long lease.
• Temporary leases from 8 October 2026. The additional guarantee is capped at one month, so the usual maximum is three months in total.
• Seasonal contracts signed before 8 October 2026 sat outside these limits. That is how 6 or 12 months up front became common.

Since 8 October 2026, a landlord also cannot require you to take out rent-default insurance (seguro de impago) (art. 36.5).

Who holds your deposit

Landlords in Andalucía used to lodge the fianza with the regional housing agency (AVRA). The Andalusian housing law ended that duty for leases signed from 24 January 2026 (Ley 5/2025, additional provision 6; Junta de Andalucía notice). Deposits lodged under the old rules stay with the Junta and are paid back, on request, as each lease ends.

On a new lease, the landlord holds your deposit. So:

• pay it by bank transfer, with a receipt that names it as the fianza;
• agree a written inventory with photos when you move in;
• at the end, sign a joint check-out document. Since 8 October 2026, if it lists no damage, or none is signed, the home is presumed handed back in good condition (art. 36.7);
• if the balance is not returned within one month of handing back the keys, it starts to earn legal interest (art. 36.4).

3. No agency fee for tenants

Since the 2023 Housing Law (Ley 12/2023), the LAU has said that the costs of property management and of drawing up the lease are paid by the landlord (LAU art. 20.1, 2023 wording). The decree of 8 October 2026 moved the rule to article 20.2 and made it stricter. These costs now "no podrán ser repercutidos al arrendatario, ni directa ni indirectamente, bajo ningún concepto o denominación": they cannot be passed on to the tenant, directly or indirectly, under any name (LAU art. 20.2). That covers any service for preparing, signing, managing, changing or renewing the lease.

In practice:

• A "management", "consultancy" or "contract" fee for a home lease is still a fee for the lease, whatever it is called.
• The rule covers home leases and, since 8 October 2026, temporary leases too. Before that date, seasonal contracts were outside it.
• Any other service not needed to sign the lease can be charged to you only if you asked for it in writing, after being told it is optional and what it costs.

With us, the owner pays our fee. You pay us nothing, before or after signing.

4. Checked owner, visited home, one price

The Nota Simple

A Nota Simple is a short extract from the Land Registry (Registro de la Propiedad). It shows the registered owner of a home and any mortgages or other charges on it. Anyone with a legitimate interest in the property can request one (Ley Hipotecaria, arts. 221 and 222). A future tenant normally qualifies, though the registrar decides. Ask at any land registry or online at registradores.org, for a small fee (around €9 plus VAT online at the time of writing). It is for information only, not a certificate.

Before we offer a home, we check its Nota Simple. The person who signs your lease must be the registered owner, or must show written authority from the owner. If they are not, ask why before you pay anything.

A home we have been inside

Photos can be old, edited or of a different unit. Someone from our team has been inside every home we offer, so we can answer questions about light, noise and parking before you travel.

One home, one price

The same flat is often listed by several agencies at once, sometimes at different rents. This year we saw a three-bedroom flat in one complex listed at €2,400 by one agency and €2,600 by another. Matching them can mean comparing the furniture in the photos. We show each home once, at the rent the owner has agreed. If you see one of our homes elsewhere at a different price, tell us and we will check it with the owner.

Fake "private owner" ads

Some ads labelled "private owner" or particular are placed by agencies. Others are scams: the "owner" is abroad and asks for a deposit before sending the keys. To protect yourself:

• never pay for a home that you, or someone you trust, have not seen in person;
• check that the name on the Nota Simple matches the person you are dealing with;
• pay by bank transfer against a written receipt, never in cash or through a money transfer service.

5. Replies within an hour

Good homes on this coast often go within days, and many renters take the first home where someone answers clearly. When you message us about a home, we reply within an hour, in English, Spanish or Russian. If the home has gone, we say so and tell you what is still free.

What to bring as a newcomer

Owners want to know you can pay. Newcomers often have no Spanish payslips or Spanish tax return yet, but some agents still ask for them in your first month. We do not. We put a complete file from your home country in front of the owner:

• a passport or national ID card for each adult;
• your NIE number, if you have one (if not, the date of your appointment);
• proof of income: your employment contract and last three payslips or, if you are self-employed, your last tax return from your home country and recent business bank statements;
• recent bank statements showing savings, if your income is new or irregular;
• a reference from your current or last landlord;
• a short note on who is moving (adults, children, pets) and your planned start date.

If your proof of income is thin, the usual answer is an additional guarantee within the legal cap, or a guarantor. It is not 6 months up front.

Good to know: English documents are often accepted. Ask before you pay for a sworn translation (traducción jurada).

Before you sign: a checklist

• The contract says arrendamiento de vivienda habitual. If it says temporary or seasonal, it states a real reason that fits your situation.
• The total due at signing is no more than 4 months' rent (3 on a temporary lease).
• No agency, management, consultancy or contract fee is charged to you.
• The landlord's name matches the Nota Simple, or they show written authority from the owner.
• You, or someone you trust, have seen the home in person.
• The fianza is one month's rent, paid by transfer, with a receipt.
• You have an inventory with photos, signed by both sides.
• If you pay community fees, the contract states the yearly amount. Since 8 October 2026, property taxes such as IBI cannot be passed on to you (art. 20.1).
• You can register on the padrón at the address.
• You have a signed copy. A tenant can always insist on a written contract (art. 37).

This guide is general information about Spanish and Andalusian rental law as checked on 8 October 2026. It is not legal advice. The rules are changing quickly this year, so check the current law on BOE and ask a lawyer (abogado) about your own contract.