Hi All

I have a problem, I was duped into signing a 3 month contract of an apartment which was not fit to rent. It is 2 bedroom duplex in Barcelona, sounds lovely right....Wrong! The place when I moved in smelt like sh1t and the room downstairs had some sort of flood from the drains which caused the God awful smell. Anyways I reported this to the agency and they said it would be sorted in 1 week which I though was OK for Spanish labor times, wrong again 3 months and they wanted the full amount for the rent which after employing a Spanish translator to help me was granted at half months rent but with un-needed stress and heartache. May I add I only got this done because I held them to ransom until it was completed.
Must mention the flat is a bajo apartment so before I go on I know I am to expect some form of pests at some point. However having a cockroach infestation which has cost me 300€ to fix after 2 treatments and various pest bombs. Now it gets better I found a dead mouse in the bathroom yesterday.

So I've had enough now I'm moving out and I tell my landlord and the blood sucking agency that 3 months ago. I cleverly used the 3 months deposit to pay the last 3 months seeing as they took this liberty in the first place so I thought it only fair. There is also an anomaly in the contract that says I owe 2 extra weeks from when the contract ends. So I meet with the yesterday (landlord and agency) and they demand I pay back the deposit on the flat in order to stay here even though I told them I was giving my notice 3 months ago. Basically they want the "security" of having 1200€ to make sure I pay all the bills before I leave even though I have these on direct debit with my bank. This apartment is non-furnished so why a 3 month security deposit was needed is beyond me. Back to the meeting, so I tell them through my translator they won't get a single cent from me further as I believe they only act when there's money involved and when I have an issue it takes months to sort. When I told them about the safari in my apartment they simply said call pest control not our problem, also had a broken toilet which took them 10 days to sort and it's still not right must have got the cheapest guy to do it probably a basic handy man.

So after they hear my response to their "demand" they say they are going to deunicia me....My question is even though they have my signature on a contract which says I cannot use the deposit as rent and the fact that they have no duty of care and also that they seem to be willing to rip me off at any costs which is what the majority of agencies do here in Barcelona after a bit of research among friends and co-workers.

Will they take this further even though they have the full 1 year payment, is it worth for them to do this as they said if this goes to court I would end up paying the rent and lose the deposit so would be out of pocket or are they just trying to get more money out of me?

Thanks in advance, I know this is detailed but any help would be appreciated.

Cojack

As Concierge for the Spanish section of BE I would like to say hello and welcome.

BE is a very large expat website, so if you have problems finding your way around we have concierges who will try to direct you. The moderators for the Spanish forums are Mitzyboy and Fred James, moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderador who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge of the issues of living in Spain. At the top of the page you will find a quirkily named thread called Free Beer which is full of important and useful information. Hope you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

I have no idea where you stand with all of this but many of our members I am sure will have information to give to you. Good luck with this and your future place.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

Hi Cojack

I have no idea what the landlord and agency will decide to do

However, your rental contract would normally state that you would be responsible for any small repairs eg. changing a light bulb etc, but anything substantial will need to be dealth with by the landlord. This would include pest control

If your landlord had broken the terms of that contract that you should denounce them. In any case, it is always important to meet your landlord, even take them for a drink so to be on good terms with them, this makes it less likely that there will be any problems

Obviously this is very difficult given the language isssues. Did you not notice the bad state of the flat when you went to view it?

Hi Cricketman

The problem is not with the landlord she is very nice and I offered to make inquiries about fixing the damage but the agency stepped in and now their making demands and not her but I know they're in her ear basically wanting to skim 1200€ because they can and they know as a foreigner I wouldn't have a leg to stand on.

The only time they do anything is when they have a chance to get their greedy little mits out. Im sure this happens all the time but I have no badwill to the lady at all but asking 1200€ to cover any "unpaid" bills is a total joke, everything in this apartment is mine it didn't even have a bed-frame when I moved in.

Do you think they will take this further or will they realise they can't **** with me and now they'll give up. I doubt she would spend 600€ to get 600€ back seems pointless.

I've no idea

Btw I am a foreigner in Spain too and have never come across people "trying to scam me because I am a foreigner". I rented out a flat in Barcelona for nearly 2 years and the landlord and agency were very reasonable.

Like all things in Spain, if you can resolve things personably then they will probably end up fine. Once things because anonymous with lawyers involved etc then you are in a losing battle. I would recommended meeting up with your landlord to resolve the matter over a coffee. At the end of the day, the contract is with her, not the agency.

Of course you will have to bring a Spanish or Catalan speaking friend to help you out. Good luck!