Official: The community of neighbors can prohibit the use of the pool to tenants who do not pay the fees

The neighborhood association can cut off access to the pool to those who do not pay the fees, and that is today one of the clearest tools to put pressure on delinquent tenants or owners.

The key is that the Horizontal Property Law allows temporarily depriving the use of non-essential services, as long as the measure is approved by the board and does not affect the habitability of the building.

Delinquent neighbors

With life becoming more expensive, many communities are seeing some neighbors begin to fall behind on payments. The fees usually cover basic expenses such as cleaning, electricity in common areas, the elevator or garden maintenance, and, according to specialists, they are usually around 100 euros per month.

However, the biggest problem comes with extraordinary expenses, when you have to deal with works, elevator changes or urgent repairs that increase the bill. That’s when the defaulters appear. And although not all non-payments arise from bad faith, sometimes there is a specific economic crisis, the community does have room to act.

Article 21.1 of the Horizontal Property Law makes it clear that the board can agree to “dissuasive measures” against late payment, such as interests higher than the legal amount or temporary deprivation of services, as long as they are not abusive or disproportionate.

The pool, outside the neighborhood package

The pool falls squarely into that category of non-essential service. That means that, if properly approved by the community, a non-paying neighbor can remain unused as long as they remain in debt.

The same does not occur with essential elements of the building, such as the entrance, the elevator or access to the home, which cannot be limited because they would affect habitability. The idea is simple: if someone does not contribute to common expenses, they cannot enjoy all the extras.

In practice, this makes the pool a very useful lever for the community, especially in urbanizations where the cost of maintaining it is high and non-payments multiply in summer. The message for the delinquent neighbor is that the debt is not only claimed, it can also have visible consequences on a daily basis.

How to claim the debt

Before going to court, communities try to find intermediate solutions. The Organic Law on Adequate Means of Dispute Resolution allows a formal claim to be sent to the owner, normally through a ‘confidential binding offer’, to give them the opportunity to regularize their situation without litigation. If the debtor responds or pays within a month, the conflict can be resolved without going to court.

If there is no agreement, the community can sue. The procedure will be verbal if the amount does not exceed 15,000 euros, and ordinary if it is greater. The problem, as some specialists warn, is that the process can take a long time and become a situation that wears out all the neighbors. For this reason, many communities prefer to exhaust the internal route first and use the legal and statutory pressure that the law allows them.

What can and cannot the community do?

As the law details, the community of neighbors can limit accessory services such as a swimming pool, gym or sports courts if the board so agrees and if the measure is included in the statutes or is approved in accordance with the law.

But it cannot punish the defaulting neighbor by depriving him of the essentials or impose retroactive measures. In other words: collect a legal debt, yes; punish disproportionately, no.

For this reason, article 21.1 insists that the measures must be reasonable and not affect habitability. The pool, on the other hand, can become a ‘suspended privilege’ for those who do not pay.