The President
The President is normally elected at the AGM by vote.
However, if this isn’t possible, he or she can also be determined by rotation or a ‘draw’. This means that you could end up being the Community president for a year whether you want to or not!
It can be very difficult to be released from this obligation and often the President has to dedicate quite a lot of time to the role, with very little thanks for the work done; it is not a commitment to be taken lightly!
The administrator
Whilst not a legal obligation to appoint one, most communities of owners (except the very small ones) will have to do so, as the administrator will take on responsibility for much of the day to day running of the community, relieving the Committee members of many tasks which they would simply not have the time to do, due to the sheer volumes of work involved, especially in the very large urbanisations. It is common for the Administrator to also take on the role of Secretary for the Community.
The Administrator is known as the ‘Administrador de la Comunidad de Propietarios’ in Spanish and they should be qualified as an administrator of communities of owners (‘Administrador de Fincas’), and should also be a registered member of the ‘Colegio de Administradores de Fincas Rústicas y Urbanas’ which is an official governing body of community administrators.
It will be their duty to look after all the legal aspects of running the community to make sure everything complies with Spanish property Law.
Additionally, they will keep all of the legal documents relating to the Constitution of the Community of Owners and have the keys to all public and utility access points.
They are also legally responsible for the monthly/quarterly/annual collection of the community charges. Spanish law dictates the recovery procedures permitted of outstanding debts, so they would ensure adherence to the law in the recovery process.
There may be other duties which they also control such as dealing directly with supplier’s contracts (e.g. pool maintenance).
Other Representatives
Sometimes other representatives are appointed by the Community of Owners at the Annual General Meeting to act on behalf of the Community as a whole throughout the year.
Whoever is chosen as a representative has to be a property owner themself, and be appointed by the other property owners.
The obligations and rights of the President, Secretary and other Representatives
In summary, they are responsible for the smooth running of the community of property owners by:
- Making sure decisions taken at meetings are implemented
- Agreeing the annual budget.
- Ensuring that the Administrator is doing their duty.
- Making decisions on day to day issues that come to their attention.
- Organising extraordinary general meetings as necessary.
- Keeping other property owners informed of important decisions or changes that have to be made.
- Taking legal action if necessary to enforce community rules.
This involves regular committee meetings and following the community statutes and bylaws in the decision making process.
Taking part in your Community will ultimately make it a more pleasant place to be. So try and get involved! By taking part you can meet lots of likeminded people and make sure that you are getting the most out of your property in Spain, whether you live here all year round or just come for holidays.