Community fees and planned works: questions before buying a flat

The flat fits your shortlist. The entrance looks cared for and the asking price seems workable. Before you focus only on the rooms, ask what comes with being part of the building: regular community charges, existing debts and decisions about shared works.

This checklist is aimed at buyers in TrueCasa’s Motril–Marbella area. It uses Spain’s national Horizontal Property Act as a starting point. Have your independent adviser confirm the legal regime and documents applicable to the actual property before signing.

Separate three questions

What is the regular charge? Ask for the current amount, payment frequency and what the budget covers. Keep an annual figure beside any monthly or quarterly figure so you compare homes on the same basis. Ask whether parking or storage has a separate charge.

What is already owed? Request the seller’s current community-debt certificate for your adviser to review. Do not substitute an informal message saying “everything is paid”.

What has been approved for the future? Ask about additional contributions for works, often called derramas, and request the relevant decisions and payment timetable. A normal recurring charge and an extra contribution belong on separate lines in your planning.

Why the debt certificate matters

Under article 9.1(e) of the national Horizontal Property Act, the acquired property can be liable for certain community debts of previous owners, covering the elapsed part of the acquisition year and the three previous calendar years. The provision also requires the seller’s declaration and matching debt certificate for the public transfer document, unless the buyer expressly releases the seller from providing that certificate. [1]

Ask your adviser to explain the certificate’s date, the property it identifies and any amount stated. Understand the implications before agreeing to dispense with it. A document about debt at a stated time is not a promise that future shared-building costs will be zero.

Ask about planned works as well as arrears

Spain’s consumer ministry advises buyers to check the community-debt certificate and whether approved additional contributions remain payable. It treats these as checks to make before the purchase, alongside other property debts and charges. [2]

Practical questions include: Has a lift replacement, roof repair or façade project been discussed or approved? Is a cost estimate available? What instalments are due, and when? Which documents confirm the answers? Ask your adviser to clarify who should bear each payment in your proposed transaction; do not decide that from a verbal assurance.

Take the shared areas into the viewing

Ask for the entrance, stairs, accessible communal areas and relevant parking or storage access to be shown. Record visible observations and any areas that cannot be accessed. Ask questions about anything that needs explaining, without diagnosing causes from a photograph.

Keep a short follow-up list: the question, the document or person needed to answer it, and whether it must be resolved before your next commitment. For example, a visible repair in a shared corridor can prompt a question about planned work; the visit alone does not establish the community’s finances or your legal liability.

Human Eye, not AI

A TrueCasa preview means a real person attending in person and recording observations within an agreed scope. Human Eye, not AI describes that attendance. Document interpretation and technical certification remain with the appropriate professionals.

Our real inspection reports are on our website in the published business report library; individual report access may depend on your account. The illustrative sample reports explain the format separately and are not evidence of a completed visit to your prospective home.

Explore TrueView Property services and fees. Local in-person previews are planned to start in the week beginning 2 November 2026, subject to access and an agreed appointment. Agree your priorities before attendance.

A useful request to send

“Please send the current community charge, the community-debt certificate and details of approved extra contributions or works awaiting payment. Please confirm what each document covers and which questions my adviser should resolve before signing.”

Official sources

[1] BOE: Ley 49/1960, Horizontal Property Act, article 9.1(e). Current consolidated page displayed an update of 3 October 2026; checked 28 October 2026.

[2] Ministerio de Derechos Sociales, Consumo y Agenda 2030: checking debts before buying a second-hand home. Checked 28 October 2026.

Published 28 October 2026 by TrueCasa. Prepared with AI assistance and checked against the listed sources. General practical guidance, not individual legal or financial advice, a building diagnosis or findings about a particular home. Human Eye, not AI refers to actual human attendance.