Property owners in Spain are required to pay for utilities. The cost of maintaining a property can vary greatly both from the type of object (villa, studio...) and from the region. In addition, the internal infrastructure of urbanization is affected. In the presence of a swimming pool, garden areas, residents of the urbanization pay for services to maintain these facilities clean and tidy. If the apartment or house does not belong to any urbanization, then, accordingly, no payments will be made for the gardener or cleaning of the pool.
Electricity
Payment for electricity is carried out by the meter. The average family in an average apartment consumes about 40-50 euros of electricity per month. In addition, there is a subscription fee for the use of an electric meter (about 0.5 euros) and for the use of electricity – about 16 euros per quarter. These payments are included in the payment receipt, even if no one lives in the apartment.
Water
Water in Spain is also charged by the meter, plus a subscription fee. As in the case of electricity, payment is mandatory, even if the water was not used, and amounts to about 15 euros per quarter. On average, a family of three consumes water for 20-30 euros per month.
However, the pricing of water consumption depends on the region of the location of the property and technical conditions. Thus, the complexity of water supply in high-altitude areas is reflected in the final price for water for the consumer. Currently, the cost of a cubic meter of water in mainland Spain is 1 euro, and in the Canary and Balearic Islands there are increased tariffs – from 1.5 to 2.5 euros per 1 m3. It should be noted that in Spain there is a progressive scale when paying for water and electricity, and with higher consumption, the price per cubic meter or per kilowatt is higher.
Gas
Centralized gas supply in Spain is usually available only to residents of large cities. More often you can see imported gas in cylinders. Accordingly, the payment for gas is directly related to the type of its delivery to the consumer.
In houses where water is heated by gas and gas stoves are connected, the average monthly payment for using gas for a family of three is from 20 to 25 euros. The cost of replacing one gas cylinder is 17 euros. One cylinder is usually enough for three months.
In Spain, the delivery of gas cylinders around the city is practiced, so that the inconveniences associated with replacing the cylinders are minimized. Nevertheless, gas in cylinders is also available for self–replacement - almost any gas station sells it.
Comunidad
A comunidad (in Spanish, comunidad) is a community of homeowners in an apartment building or a complex of such houses, or in a cottage settlement, with an elected governing structure. The purpose of creating a community is to maintain the infrastructure, technical facilities, and recreation areas in the adjacent public areas in an appropriate manner. The financing of this structure is carried out by the owners of real estate belonging to the municipality, and is calculated (most often) in proportion to the area of the object.
If the owner's apartment or his house, villa, bungalow... If they enter the urbanization, then they should be ready for monthly payments, according to the equipment of this community. Funds may be charged for the maintenance of a gardener, for the maintenance and cleaning of a swimming pool or several pools, a gym, a tennis court, and so on. In each case, everything depends on urbanization, on the area of the territory and its location. They can be from 25 euros to 200 euros in high-comfort urbanizations. When buying a property in Spain, you should ask the realtor how much it costs to pay for the comunidate.
It should also be noted that apartments that do not belong to the urbanization have adjacent territories that require maintenance, an entrance and stairwells, each house has a concierge or porter, whose services also require payment. To do this, the owners transfer funds to a special budget once a year or every six months. The amounts of payments are calculated individually in each specific case and depend on the number of floors of the house, the number of apartments, the area of the house territory and the area of the apartment.
Payment for garbage collection and disposal services for homeowners entering the urbanization is included in the comunidate. Garbage collection for non-urbanized residents costs from 30 to 50 euros per year.
For houses that are not connected to the central sewerage system, a tariff of 0.16 euros per cubic meter of wastewater applies.
Telecommunication services
Payment for communication and television services is made monthly. Connecting a telephone point will cost from 200 to 300 euros. Internet and telephone services cost the user an average of 50 euros per month. City calls cost 0.03 euros per minute of conversation, and international calls are charged an average of 1 euro/minute. Satellite TV is about 10 euros per month.
Insurance
Real estate insurance is mandatory for properties with full or partial mortgage loans. The amounts of insurance premiums are calculated based on the type of insurance object, its estimated value and the value of the property located in it. On average, property insurance for a year costs the owner 300 euros.
Taxes
The real estate tax in Spain is 0.5-2% of the cadastral value of the property and is paid once a year (in December). The tax rate may vary significantly depending on the region. It should be understood that the cadastral value of the object differs from the market price and is less than ten times less than the latter.
The municipal tax is levied annually in August or September at a rate set individually by each region. The municipal tax does not exceed 1% of the cadastral value of the property.
For non-residents of Spain, property owners are charged a tax on the estimated income from renting out premises. The basis for calculating this tax is the basic component equal to 2% of the cadastral value of the object. The tax is charged at the rate of 24.75% of the tax base. For clarity, let's assume that a non-resident will have to pay 990 euros for a bungalow with a cadastral value of 200,000 euros.
How do I pay for utilities in Spain?
To pay for utilities, you do not need to rewrite meter readings yourself or go to the bank. Special employees of public utilities collect information from metering devices for water, gas or electricity consumption. This information is processed, and based on it, a payment is made to the bank, and the amount required for repayment is debited from the homeowner's account. Based on the results of the operations performed, an invoice is sent to the bank's client, where payments and consumption volumes of a particular resource (water, electricity, gas) are deciphered.