Homeowners’ associations and tourist accommodation: complete guide to the three-fifths majority in 2026

Since 3 April 2025, no dwelling in a building subject to the horizontal property regime may be used as tourist accommodation without the express consent of the homeowners’ association. Organic Law 1/2025 reversed the previous rule — under which tourist activity was generally permitted unless expressly prohibited in the bylaws — and replaced it with a system of prior authorisation requiring a reinforced majority. This guide explains what the law requires, how the owners’ meeting is convened and votes are counted, what the association can do with licences that were already operating before the reform, and how to respond if a resolution was adopted irregularly.

What Organic Law 1/2025 changes in the Spanish Horizontal Property Act

The reform amends Article 17.12 of the Spanish Horizontal Property Act (LPH) and directly affects any owner who wishes to use their dwelling, or part of it, for short-term tourist rental. Before the reform, the activity was generally permitted unless the association’s bylaws expressly prohibited or restricted it. Since April 2025, the rule has been reversed: tourist activity is prohibited unless the owners’ meeting expressly authorises it, with a reinforced quorum that previously applied only to prohibitions.

The change is not merely formal. It means that where the bylaws are silent — which previously favoured an owner wishing to operate a tourist apartment — that silence now works against the owner: if the association has not adopted an express authorisation resolution, the activity cannot legally begin, regardless of whether a municipal tourist licence is in force.

The three-fifths majority: a dual quorum

An authorisation resolution — like a resolution imposing restrictions, a prohibition or a surcharge — requires the favourable vote of three-fifths (3/5) of all owners, who must also represent three-fifths of the ownership shares. This is a dual quorum that must be met simultaneously: it is not enough for three-fifths of the owners present to vote in favour if they do not also represent three-fifths of the building’s total ownership shares, and vice versa.

This threshold is higher than a simple majority but lower than unanimity. In associations with many absent owners or significant differences in ownership shares between apartments, reaching three-fifths may require several meetings or advance work to secure support before the meeting.

How the owners’ meeting is convened and held

For a resolution concerning tourist accommodation to be valid, the general rules governing notice and the conduct of the owners’ meeting must be followed:

• The matter must appear expressly and clearly on the meeting agenda; it cannot validly be approved under “questions and other business” or a generic heading.
• The notice must be sent with the minimum notice period required by the LPH and served on all owners at the address designated for this purpose.
• The property manager or president must record in the minutes how each owner voted and the percentage of ownership share represented, so that it can later be verified whether the dual quorum was met.
• Owners with outstanding charges may attend and speak, but their voting rights may be restricted under the LPH’s general rules on arrears.

A defect in any of these procedures — an insufficient agenda, late notice or incorrect calculation of ownership shares — is a common ground for challenging the resolution.

What the association can decide with this majority

With the same three-fifths quorum, the owners’ meeting can adopt several different types of resolution concerning tourist accommodation, which should not be confused with one another:

Authorise the activity

This allows one or more owners to lawfully start tourist activity in their dwelling, subject to any conditions the association chooses to establish in the same resolution.

Restrict or condition the activity

The association may authorise the activity subject to restrictions: for example, limiting it to certain floors, setting a maximum number of tourist apartments operating simultaneously in the building, or imposing additional house rules concerning noise, guest check-in and check-out times or the use of common areas.

Prohibit the activity

The association may resolve to prohibit tourist accommodation throughout the building, subject to the same procedural requirements — including notice and quorum — as an authorisation resolution.

Approve a surcharge on common expenses

The reform allows the association, with the same three-fifths majority, to approve a surcharge of up to 20% on the common expenses payable by tourist accommodation units, as compensation for the greater use of common areas, lifts or building services that this type of activity may generate.

Transitional regime: who retains an acquired right

The reform does not have retroactive effect. Owners who were already carrying out tourist activity lawfully before 3 April 2025 — with a valid licence and in compliance with the rules applicable at the time — retain that right, even if the association has not adopted an express authorisation resolution.

This protection nevertheless has two important qualifications:

• The acquired right concerns continuing to operate; it does not prevent the association, with a three-fifths majority, from subsequently approving a surcharge on common expenses that also applies to units already operating.
• If the municipal tourist licence expires, lapses or is not renewed — as may occur, for example, under HUTB licence phase-out schedules announced in some municipalities — the acquired right ends with the licence, and restarting the activity would then be subject to the express-authorisation regime.

It is advisable to document the start date of the activity and the status of the licence before April 2025, particularly in anticipation of a possible sale of the property or a later review by the association.

Homeowners’ associations and the purchase or sale of a property with tourist activity

Buying a dwelling that already operates as tourist accommodation does not automatically transfer the acquired right to the new owner in every case. Before signing, it is advisable to verify:

• Whether there is an express association resolution authorising the activity regardless of who owns the property, or whether continuation depends on the activity having remained uninterrupted since before April 2025.
• Whether the association has already approved, or plans to put to a vote, a surcharge on common expenses applicable to the property.
• The contents of the bylaws and minutes book, to rule out previous prohibitions or restrictions that may not appear in the Land Registry.
• The status of the municipal tourist licence associated with the property and its expiry date, independently of the horizontal property regime.

How to challenge a homeowners’ association resolution

An owner who disagrees with a resolution concerning tourist accommodation — whether because the required quorum was not reached, the matter was not on the agenda, or the owner considers the resolution abusive or discriminatory — may bring court proceedings within the time limits established by the LPH:

• Three months from adoption of the resolution, as a general rule, for owners who attended and voted against it or abstained.
• Three months from becoming aware of the resolution for those who should have been summoned but were not.
• One year where the resolution is contrary to the law or the association’s bylaws, including serious defects in the quorum or notice.

Before going to court, it is advisable to request a certified copy of the minutes and the owners’ register in writing, so that the exact calculation of votes and ownership shares can be verified from the documents, as the burden of proving that the quorum was met will generally fall on the party defending the validity of the resolution.

Relationship with the municipal and regional tourist licence

The homeowners’ association resolution is an additional and independent requirement from the municipal tourist licence and the applicable regional rules. Having a valid HUT licence does not remove the need for association approval, and vice versa: association approval does not replace the municipal licence, registration in the regional tourist register or the other formal obligations applicable to the activity. All three regimes — homeowners’ association, municipal licence and tourist register — must be complied with cumulatively and should be reviewed together before starting or continuing the activity.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need homeowners’ association approval to rent out my apartment as tourist accommodation?

Since 3 April 2025, yes, unless the activity was already being carried out lawfully before that date. Authorisation requires a three-fifths majority of owners and ownership shares.

Can the homeowners’ association ban tourist apartments that are already operating lawfully?

Not retroactively. Anyone who was already operating lawfully before 3 April 2025 retains that right, although the association may subsequently approve restrictions or a surcharge on common expenses.

¿Qué mayoría hace falta para aprobar el recargo del 20 % en gastos comunes?

The same three-fifths majority of owners and ownership shares required to authorise, restrict or prohibit tourist activity.

¿Cómo se impugna un acuerdo de la comunidad sobre vivienda turística?

Through the courts, within three months of adoption or within one year if the resolution is contrary to the law or the bylaws, where the notice, quorum or majority requirements have not been met.

Sources

• BOE — Organic Law 1/2025 of 2 January
• BOE — Spanish Horizontal Property Act, consolidated text (Art. 17)