Renting an apartment in Spain

What to know before you rent

Deposits

For a home rental the legal deposit (fianza) is one month's rent. Any additional guarantee agreed on top of it is capped at two months' rent for standard-length contracts. (source, 2026)

Leases

Tenants can extend year by year up to 5 years when the landlord is an individual, or 7 years when it is a company, even if a shorter term was signed. After that, silent renewal can add further periods. (source, 2026)

Tenant rights

For contracts covered by the 2023 housing law, annual rent updates from 2025 are limited by the INE reference index (IRAV), defined as the lowest of several CPI-based rates. (source, 2025)

Agent fees

Since the 2023 housing law, the costs of property management and drawing up the contract are payable by the landlord, not the tenant. (source, 2023-05)

Short-term rental rules

• Spain: Since 1 July 2025 every unit offered for short-term rental on online platforms must carry a number from the national Registro Único de Arrendamientos; listings without it cannot be offered. Regional tourism licences still apply on top. (source, 2025-07)
• Barcelona: Renting a whole flat to tourists for under 31 days needs a HUT licence. No new HUTs have been issued for years and the city has said the roughly 10,000 existing licences will not be renewed after November 2028. (source, 2026-08)