Who pays the IBI on a rental? What landlords can no longer charge tenants

In residential leases signed from 8 October 2026, the landlord pays the IBI property tax even if the contract says otherwise: Royal Decree-law 29/2026 bans passing the home’s taxes on to the tenant, unless the tenant is the one legally liable for them. The waste collection fee can still be passed on, community fees only if agreed in writing with their annual amount, and agency fees never.

For anyone letting a flat on the coast, the change means taking on a bill every year that the tenant often used to pay. In our portfolio, the median IBI on a flat for sale is €520 a year, and half of all flats pay between €369 and €712.

Which costs can the tenant pay from 8 October?

The decree rewrites Article 20 of the Urban Leases Act (LAU), which governs the costs of a rented home. This is how costs are now split in a new lease:

If a clause in the lease breaks these rules, it is void and treated as never written, because the law does not allow terms that work against the tenant (Article 6 of the LAU). The rest of the contract remains valid.

Can the landlord charge the IBI to the tenant?

Not any more, in new leases. Until now the law allowed the parties to agree that the home’s taxes would be paid by the tenant, and the courts upheld the clause if it was in the contract. The new wording says the opposite: the taxes linked to the home can never be imposed on the tenant, except where the tenant is the one legally liable for them.

With the IBI that exception does not apply: the person liable is the holder of the property, normally the owner, as the Local Finance Act establishes. That is why the clause passing it on, common in many long-term leases, no longer works.

The change is not retroactive. In a lease signed before 8 October, the IBI clause remains valid for as long as the contract runs, including its extensions. If a new contract is signed, even with the same tenant, the new rule applies.

Who pays the waste collection fee on a rented flat?

The waste collection fee can still be paid by the tenant. In most municipal bylaws, the taxpayer for the fee is whoever occupies the home and benefits from the service, while the owner is listed as a substitute before the town hall, with the right to pass the charge on. Because the tenant is the person liable for the fee, it falls within the decree’s exception.

Two words of caution: check how each town’s bylaw defines the taxpayer, and the agreement has to be set out in writing in the lease.

Who pays community fees on a rented flat?

It depends on the building. In buildings divided into individually owned units with a community of owners, which covers almost every apartment block and residential complex on the coast, the parties can agree that the tenant pays the community fees according to the home’s share. The agreement must be in writing and state the annual amount at the date of the contract.

During the first five years of the lease, or seven if the landlord is a company, that amount can only rise by agreement and never by more than twice the permitted rent increase. In buildings that are not divided into units, such as an entire block with a single owner, the decree bans charging community costs to the tenant.

How much IBI do owners now absorb on the Costa del Sol?

We measured it with the 60 to 100 m² flats for sale in our portfolio, the most common size in long-term lets, and with idealista’s average rent in September 2026 for an 80 m² flat.

In Marbella, the IBI on a flat of that size is around €644 a year: almost 3% of the annual rent, or about ten days of rent. In Málaga city it is €229, about five days of rent. For an owner with several let properties, the total now weighs on net yield, especially with rent increases capped until the end of 2027.

Can the agency charge fees to the tenant?

No. Since the Housing Act of May 2023, property management and contract formalisation costs have been the landlord’s responsibility. The decree closes the loopholes: they cannot be passed on directly or indirectly, under any name, and they cover any service to prepare, sign, manage, amend or renew the lease.

Any other service that is not essential to sign the lease can only be paid by the tenant if they request it expressly in writing, after being told that it is optional and what it costs.

Can a tenant be required to take out rent default insurance?

No. The decree bans requiring the tenant to take out rent default insurance or similar cover; the owner can still buy it, but at their own expense. Any guarantee on top of the deposit remains capped at two months’ rent in leases of up to five years, or seven if the landlord is a company, and in temporary lets it cannot exceed one month.

What changes with repairs?

The basic split stays the same: the owner pays for the repairs needed to keep the home habitable and the tenant for small repairs from everyday use. In temporary lets, those small repairs now also fall to the owner.

What is new is the procedure. If a defect affects habitability, safety or health, the tenant can request the repair in writing with a reasonable quote, and the owner has 15 calendar days to accept it, propose an alternative or carry out the work. If the owner does not reply or refuses without good reason, the tenant can have the repair done and deduct the cost from future rent, provided it is reasonable and documented.

When the lease ends, both parties must sign a document recording the condition of the home. If none is signed, or it lists no defects, the home is presumed to have been returned in good condition, so it is wise to make a photo inventory when handing over the keys.

What must a rental listing include now?

The decree requires rental listings to be truthful and to include, where applicable, the reference index and rent cap of stressed areas, the home’s registration code, such as the one for holiday lets, and whether the landlord is a large owner. There are no declared stressed areas in Andalusia, so for now only the last two apply on the coast.

How to factor the IBI into the rent

In Andalusia, the initial rent of a new lease is freely agreed, so the owner can build the IBI into the price. What they cannot do is recover it later: until the end of 2027, without a new agreement with the tenant, the annual increase cannot exceed 2% and is frozen if the rent is above the reference index. If the town hall raises the bill, the owner absorbs the difference.

• Set the rent with the IBI included: divide the latest bill by twelve and add it to the monthly rent.
• If the tenant is going to pay the waste fee or community fees, put it in writing with the annual amount of each.
• Do not charge the tenant fees or management costs, not even under another name.
• Reply in writing to any repair request within 15 days.
• Sign a photo inventory when handing over the keys and the end-of-lease document when you get them back.

In short: who pays what on a rental in 2026?

In leases signed from 8 October, the IBI and agency fees are always the owner’s; the waste fee and community fees can be passed to the tenant if agreed in writing, and metered utilities are the tenant’s. In earlier leases, the clauses already signed still apply.

At EVS PROPERTY GROUP we help owners and investors set a realistic rent, calculate the net yield of a let flat and review the lease on a tenanted home before buying it in Málaga and on the Costa del Sol. If you are weighing up your options, let’s talk.

This article is for general information only and is not a substitute for a lawyer’s advice on your specific case.

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