The Supreme Court of Justice of the Balearic Islands (Tribunal Superior de Justicia de las Islas Baleares) has confirmed the illegality of a tourist accommodation in Son Espanyolet.
The government has withdrawn permits for Alzina Living due to serious construction defects.
The Supreme Court of the Balearic Islands has confirmed that one of the vacation homes of Alzina Living in the district of Son Espanyolet could not be authorized. The Administrative Court (Sala de lo Contencioso) has rejected the appeal of the company against the decision of the Ministry of Tourism (Conselleria de Turisme) to withdraw its license as a vacation rental company, since the property number 61 does not meet the necessary requirements for such authorization. The property "Villa Barrera 61" was offered for rent to "non-vacationers" on the company's website.
In this context, the expert noted in an initial report that not all defects had been remedied and that the stated number of beds of eight did not correspond to the certificate of habitability, in which only six places had been stated.
In addition, another expert report disclosed that the property had a room that was previously unknown to the authority. Based on these reports, the permit was eventually withdrawn, as the property was also only able to achieve 64 out of 70 minimum points required for issuance.
In its defense, the company argued that, contrary to the expert report, it met the requirements for the operation of such accommodation and that it had not enjoyed sufficient legal protection during the proceedings. However, the court rejected both arguments. In the ruling, it states that any property used for tourist purposes must meet "all the prescribed requirements" from the outset. However, this was not the case with the Barrera 61 accommodation: "The content of the first report, which reveals a clearly inadequate condition of the property, provides sufficient information. Claiming that a property that is in a dilapidated condition is free of defects does not comply with legal principles."
In addition, the court reprimanded the company for not correcting the number of bed spaces and for not sufficiently eliminating the deficiencies. "The company did not deny this either during the proceedings or now in the court hearing, for which it did not even present any evidence," the court concluded.
It considers that the objector was also not defenceless, since "he was fully aware of the reasons for the refusal of the permit".
Do you have questions about real estate law in Spain or about applying for a vacation rental license in Mallorca?
Dr. Dominic Porta advises you as a German lawyer in Mallorca in Spanish real estate law.
www.anwaltmallorca.eu
