! Spanish News Today – What are the penalties for landlords in Spain for evicting squatters?

Vesta specializes in intruder and squatter protection protecting vacation homes while owners are away

Failure to take immediate action against squatters can result in heartache and big expense for holiday home owners

For many people, owning a holiday property in Spain is a luxury to be enjoyed at certain times of the year and perhaps a source of rental income at other times, but sometimes the dream can turn into a nightmare. when squatters occupy unoccupied houses and prove very difficult to evict.

Unfortunately, the problem of squatters (or “okupas”) is becoming more and more common in Spain. It is calculated that around 40 homes a day on average are occupied illegally across the country, and without specialist assistance it can take years for rightful owners to recover their properties.

During the pandemic, with second homes and vacation homes remaining unoccupied for longer periods due to travel restrictions, the phenomenon has become even more widespread and professional gangs are breaking into properties and then illegally reselling the keys to the occupants.

Fortunately, however, a few companies have become experts in helping homeowners deal with the situation, and Vigilaire Vesta specializes in helping expatriate homeowners along the Mediterranean coast from Valencia through the Costa Blanca, Costa Cálida, Costa de Almería and Costa Tropical to Estepona on the Costa del Sol.

In the question of the squat, prevention is better than cure, and Vesta Vigilar offer advanced professional 24/7 surveillance of your holiday home in Spain. Although the goal is to protect against home invasion, if your home is targeted by squatters, Vesta Vigilar’s legal team is ready to document, report and fight on your behalf, ensuring you get complete protection against squatters, as you repossess your vacation home. as soon as possible, while accompanying you throughout the process.

It is a fact that if your house is occupied by Spanish squatters you have to act fast. The law says they can be legally evicted by local authorities within the first 48 hours if the matter is reported correctly, but otherwise ‘squatters’ rights’ kick in and a lengthy legal process is mandatory. which can last anything between six months and three years.

In the meantime, homeowners have to deal with bills, mortgage payments and a long period of stress and worry.

For this reason, it is essential to ensure that you do everything possible to prevent your property from being occupied and to ensure that if this occurs, the incident is reported immediately and correctly.

Home protection with Vesta Vigilar

The home protection program created by Vesta Vigilar includes the installation of high-quality cameras in the most appropriate areas of your home, with each camera communicating with a main server. This allows operators to immediately contact the owner if an unwanted occupant is detected and document any reported activity so that a full report can be made for police and local authorities.

By granting a power of attorney to Vesta Vigilar’s legal team, you can be sure that all procedures are carried out in a professional and correct manner, guaranteeing effective protection. Even if immediate expulsion is not obtained, they will take the case to the Spanish courts at no additional cost.

In addition, intruders are contacted immediately via the communication system included in the cameras and are informed that the property they have entered has extensive squatter protection: this is often enough to ensure that they leave without further stock.

Contact Vesta Vigilar without delay (office hours 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.) to find out more about the protection they offer against home invasion and squatters in Spain: in addition to Spanish, their multilingual staff are fluent in English, Scandinavian languages ​​and Russian and they are continually expanding their services to cover more languages ​​as the demand for their services increases.