Unpaid community fees

[Unregistered]

Hello,
My friend has outstanding community debts of nearly 6000 euros and last week a policeman turned up at her door saying he had to verify the address. She is now in a panic as she thinks she will lose her house. We have tried contacting the community to see if she could start paying bit by bit but they have not replied. She lost her job so only gets odd cleaning jobs to get by. She also has fallen behind with her mortgage although she does make regular payments to the bank. She is scared of being made to go to court and what will happen. Is there anything she can do to stop legal action at this stage and what is the next procedure? What can the court do, can they take the house or anything in it? (with the drop in prices of property she would probably be in negative equity if she tried to sell). The policeman said notices were sent but she never received any. (her postal service is very bad where she lives) What if she was summonsed to court but didnt go because she didnt get the notice, could she be arrested? Any help would be great.

[Lawbird Lawyer]

Dear Sir or Madam

No one gets arrested in Spain for being in arrears or in debt.

Otherwise more than half of this country would be in jail already!

There is no prison sentence for owning money in Spain whether its €100 or €100 million euros.

Regarding losing her house for being in arrears with her Community of Owners (CO) yes this may happen. CO have legal tools to enforce this against debtors' properties placing a lien and seizing the property if necessary. More details on this in my article:

Comunidad de Propietarios: Avoid Problems with Your Neighbours in Spain (http://belegal.com/articles/showArticle/spanish-comunidad-de-propietarios) - 26th June 2009

Regarding being in arrears with a Spanish lender; they can start repossession proceedings if you are in arrears. Normally they wait 3 months (90 days) in arrears before doing so, but not always. More details in my articles on the matter:

• Buying Property In Spain Tips Part II. Off-Plan Property (http://belegal.com/articles/showArticle/buying-off-plan-property-in-spain) – 18th April 2010
• Advice to Struggling Mortgage Borrowers (http://www.levantelifestyle.com/index.php?mod=art_det&art_id=707)-13th April 2010
• 10 Common Abusive Clauses in Spanish Mortgage Loans (http://belegal.com/articles/showArticle/10-common-abusive-clauses-in-spanish-mortgage-loans) – 4th June 2009
• The Dación en Pago Explained (http://belegal.com/articles/showArticle/spanish-mortgage-dacion-en-pago-handing-keys-bank) – 28th March 2009
• The Dación en Pago Procedure (http://belegal.com/wordpress/dacion-en-pago/) – 21st November 2008
• Bank Repossessions in Spain: A Legal Perspective (http://belegal.com/articles/showArticle/home-repossessions-in-spain-defaulting-on-mortgage) – 25th June 2008

So bottom line, the way to stop all this is by paying whats owed or else negotiate terms of repayment.

Yours faithfully
Raymundo LarraÃ*n Nesbitt