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Check whether your rent is fair

Review what you pay or have paid for renting your home against what the law allows: agency fees, deposit and guarantees, increases, charges and return of the deposit.

BetaSection in testing. Rental laws have changed several times in 2026: each rule says whether it is in force, awaiting validation by Congress (pendiente de convalidación) or repealed.

How do you want to start?

You can upload your tenancy agreement and the other rental papers to fill in the details with what is read from them, or type them in yourself. Before anything is calculated, you check each detail.

What the law allows in your rental

The rules the review compares each item with, according to the date of your agreement and with the law behind each one. Several have changed in 2026: each law says whether it is in force, awaiting validation by Congress (pendiente de convalidación) or repealed.

Reviewed on 9 October 2026Sources: Ley de Arrendamientos Urbanos, the Tenancy Act (BOE) · IRAV (INE) · Statutory interest rate (Banco de España)Who is behind this

Agency fees

Property management and contract formalisation costs depend on the date of your agreement:

  • Agreements signed between 6 March 2019 and 25 May 2023: they are borne by the landlord when the landlord is a company (legal entity, persona jurídica). If the landlord is an individual, the law does not say who pays them.
  • Agreements signed between 26 May 2023 and 7 October 2026: they are always borne by the landlord.
  • Agreements signed on or after 8 October 2026: Real Decreto-ley 29/2026, in force since 8 October 2026 and awaiting validation by Congress, says that they cannot be charged to the tenant either directly or indirectly, under any heading or name. This covers any service to prepare, formalise, manage, renew or change the agreement; another service that is not needed for the agreement can only be charged if you asked for it in writing knowing that it was optional and what it cost.

A charge under another name, such as “credit check” (estudio de solvencia), “reservation” (reserva) or “management” (gestión), may be a fee. In an agreement before 8 October 2026, the review flags it for you to look at, without a figure; from that date, it counts it as paid too much, unless it was an optional service you asked for in writing.

Can the letting agency charge you? Agency fees on a rental

Laws

Deposit, guarantees and advance payment

The deposit (fianza) is compulsory and, in a housing rental, is one month's rent in cash (art. 36.1 LAU).

In addition, the agreement can require another guarantee: more money, a bank guarantee (aval) or an insurance policy. In agreements signed on or after 6 March 2019 for up to five years, or up to seven if the landlord is a company, that additional guarantee cannot exceed two months' rent (art. 36.5 LAU).

The landlord cannot require more than one month's rent in advance (art. 17.2 LAU).

In addition, Real Decreto-ley 29/2026, in force since 8 October 2026 and awaiting validation by Congress, says that the tenant cannot be required to take out rent default insurance or any similar cover.

The review compares the money you handed over with those caps. A bank guarantee or an insurance policy is not money handed over: it flags them, without a figure.

Rental deposit: how much you can be asked for

Laws

How the rent is updated

In agreements signed on or after 6 March 2019, the rent is only updated if the agreement provides for it, and once a year: on the day each year of the agreement is completed. If the clause says it is updated but not with which index, the one set by law is used. And the increase can never go above the legal cap on that day (art. 18.1 LAU).

The new rent is payable from the month after you are notified in writing, with the percentage applied; a note on the previous month's receipt is enough (art. 18.2 LAU).

The cap for each year, according to the day the year of the agreement is completed:

From 06-03-2019 to 30-03-2022

The IPC.

From 31-03-2022 to 31-12-2023

The IGC (at most 2 %), or the IPC if it is lower. A new agreement between the parties could replace the IGC with another increase. If your landlord is a large landlord (gran tenedor) (more than ten residential properties or more than 1.500 m² of residential floor space), the increase cannot go above the IGC even if you agreed another increase.

In 2024

3 %, or the IPC if it is lower. A new agreement between the parties could replace the 3 % with another increase. If your landlord is a large landlord (gran tenedor), the increase cannot go above 3 % even if you agreed another increase. Since 26-05-2023 a large landlord is anyone who owns more than ten residential properties or more than 1.500 m² of residential floor space, and in a declared stressed housing area (zona de mercado tensionado) the autonomous community can lower this to five or more residential properties in that area.

From 01-01-2025 to 07-10-2026

In agreements dated 26-05-2023 or later, the IRAV or the IPC, whichever is lower; in earlier ones, the IPC.

Since 08-10-2026

The IRAV in all agreements. And until 31-12-2027, without a new agreement between the parties, at most 2 %. And if your rent is above the price limit that applies to it under the system of reference indices, no increase is allowed.

Status as at 9 October 2026: RDL 29/2026 has applied since 8 October 2026 and is awaiting validation by Congress (pendiente de convalidación). Congress has to vote on it within the 30 days following its enactment; if it does not validate it, it is repealed.

Decrees with the same 2 % cap that Congress repealed: RDL 8/2026, which applied from 22-03-2026 until 29 or 30-04-2026; RDL 26/2026, which applied on 01-10-2026 (or until 02-10-2026). An increase on those days is a doubtful case.

If an increase falls on the days of a decree that Congress repealed, the review gives both calculations and does not add it to the total. If it depends on a law awaiting validation, it gives both and the total only adds the lower one.

The index that counts is the latest one published on that day. The figures for each month, with the day the INE published them, are here: IRAV and IPC for each month

How much your rent can go up in 2026

Laws

Charges: community fees, IBI and waste collection

The landlord can only charge you the general costs of the building or services without a meter if you agreed it in writing, with their annual amount as at the date of the agreement (art. 20.1 LAU). Taxes, such as the IBI (property tax), have their own rule, further down.

In the first five years of the agreement, or seven if the landlord is a company, those charges, except taxes, can only go up once a year, by agreement, and never by more than double what the rent can go up by (art. 20.2 LAU, which Real Decreto-ley 29/2026 renumbers as 20.3).

What is measured with the home's own meter, such as water or electricity, is paid by you (art. 20.3 LAU, which Real Decreto-ley 29/2026 renumbers as 20.4).

In addition, Real Decreto-ley 29/2026, in force since 8 October 2026 and awaiting validation by Congress, says that taxes on the property, such as the IBI, cannot be charged to the tenant, unless it is the tenant who has to pay them. The review applies this to agreements signed from that date; for earlier ones, it gives it as information.

In agreements signed before 8 October 2026, taxes, such as the IBI, could only be passed on to the tenant with a written agreement and with their annual amount as at the date of the agreement (art. 20.1 LAU, in its previous wording).

IBI, community fees and waste: what your landlord can charge you

Laws

Return of the deposit

When the agreement ends and you hand over the keys, the landlord has one month to return the deposit to you. After that month, whatever remains to be returned accrues statutory interest (interés legal del dinero) (art. 36.4 LAU).

The statutory interest rate has been 3,25 % since 2023: it was set by the Ley de Presupuestos Generales del Estado (State Budget Act) for 2023 and stays in place while that budget remains rolled over. The rate for each year is in the Banco de España's table. As no law says whether the year counts as 365 or 360 days, the review gives the interest with both calculations.

The landlord can deduct damage or debts. The review does not assess whether a deduction is justified: it compares what was returned with the deposit and the deductions you enter, and calculates the interest for the delay.

In addition, Real Decreto-ley 29/2026, in force since 8 October 2026 and awaiting validation by Congress, provides for an end-of-tenancy document signed by both parties; if it is not drawn up or does not record any damage, it is presumed, unless proven otherwise, that the home was handed back in good condition (art. 36.7 LAU).

Your landlord has not returned your deposit: time limit and interest

Laws

Stressed housing areas

Autonomous communities can declare stressed residential market areas (zonas de mercado residencial tensionado), and the Ministerio de Vivienda (Housing Ministry) publishes each declaration in the BOE. In a declared area, the rent of a new agreement may be capped: at that of the previous agreement or, in some cases, such as with a large landlord (gran tenedor), at the price of the State reference system (art. 17.6 and 17.7 LAU).

And for updates until 31 December 2027, Real Decreto-ley 29/2026, in force since 8 October 2026 and awaiting validation by Congress, says that if the rent is above the maximum price limit that applies to it under the system of reference price indices, no increase is allowed. The decree does not say in which cases that limit applies; the law sets it for some new agreements in stressed housing areas (art. 17.7 LAU).

The review does not calculate these caps: it asks whether your home is in a stressed housing area and gives you the link to the State reference system.

Laws

Duration and extensions

If the agreement sets less than five years, or seven if the landlord is a company, it is extended each year until it reaches them, unless you give 30 days' notice that you do not want to continue (art. 9.1 LAU).

Once that period is over, if nobody gives notice (the landlord four months in advance and you two), the agreement continues one more year each time, up to three years, and you can leave at the end of any of those years by giving one month's notice (art. 10.1 LAU).

In addition, Real Decreto-ley 29/2026, in force since 8 October 2026 and awaiting validation by Congress, provides, with requirements and exceptions, for an extraordinary extension by years, up to two more, if you request it. The main ones: the agreement must be in force on 8 October 2026; its mandatory extension under art. 9.1, its tacit extension under art. 10 or its tacit renewal (tácita reconducción) must end before 31 December 2028, and you must be up to date with the rent and have been so every month during the previous eight. It does not apply if you agree other conditions, a new agreement or a renewal with a rent at least 5 % lower, or if the landlord states that they need the home for themselves or their family (art. 9.3 LAU). If the stressed housing area extension (art. 10.3 LAU) is available, that one applies.

Separately, Real Decreto-ley 28/2026, which comes into force on 15 November 2026 and is awaiting validation by Congress, rewrites art. 10 of the LAU, the one on extensions, and from then on excludes the extraordinary extension of Real Decreto-ley 29/2026 when the extension under the new art. 10.1 applies.

The review does not check extensions or notice periods: it gives you the dates of your agreement as information.

Laws

Rules of your autonomous community

The Ley de Arrendamientos Urbanos (the Tenancy Act) applies throughout Spain, and the review only applies national rules. Your community may have its own rules that add to them, such as those on its stressed housing areas.

Communities can require the landlord to lodge the deposit with a public body (additional provision 3.ª LAU). It is an obligation of the landlord towards the administration: it does not change what you pay.

Laws

Frequently asked questions

Can I be charged agency fees?

It depends on when your agreement was signed. Since 26 May 2023, property management and contract formalisation costs are borne by the landlord (art. 20.1 LAU, in its wording before Real Decreto-ley 29/2026). Between 6 March 2019 and 25 May 2023, they were when the landlord was a company. In addition, Real Decreto-ley 29/2026, in force since 8 October 2026 and awaiting validation by Congress, says that, in agreements signed from then on, they cannot be charged to the tenant under any heading or name.

How much can my rent go up this year?

Only what your agreement provides for, once a year and without going above the legal cap on the day the year of the agreement is completed (art. 18.1 LAU). Until 31 December 2027, according to Real Decreto-ley 29/2026, in force since 8 October 2026 and awaiting validation by Congress, the cap without a new agreement is the IRAV, and at most 2 %. The table on this page gives the cap for each year.

What is the IRAV?

It is the index the INE publishes every month to limit the annual increase in housing rents (additional provision 11.ª of the LAU, the Tenancy Act). It is the lowest value among the IPC, core IPC and an average that brings the result closer to 2 %. It has served as the cap since 1 January 2025.

How much deposit can I be asked for?

One month's rent in cash (art. 36.1 LAU). Separately, the agreement can require an additional guarantee: in agreements signed on or after 6 March 2019 for up to five years, or seven if the landlord is a company, no more than two months' rent (art. 36.5 LAU). And in advance, no more than one month's rent (art. 17.2 LAU).

When does the deposit have to be returned to me?

Once a month has passed since you hand over the keys, whatever remains to be returned accrues statutory interest (interés legal del dinero) (art. 36.4 LAU). The landlord can deduct damage or debts; the review does not assess whether a deduction is justified, but it does calculate the interest for the delay.

What happens with laws awaiting validation by Congress?

A real decreto-ley (decree-law) applies from the moment it comes into force, but Congress has to validate it within the 30 days following its enactment; if it does not, it is repealed. As at 9 October 2026, awaiting validation by Congress (pendiente de convalidación): Real Decreto-ley 29/2026, in force since 8 October 2026, and Real Decreto-ley 28/2026, which comes into force on 15 November 2026. When a result depends on a law awaiting validation, the review gives both calculations and the total only adds the lower one. If an increase falls on the days of a decree that Congress repealed, the review gives both calculations and does not add it to the total. The repealed ones: Real Decreto-ley 8/2026, from 22-03-2026 until 29 or 30-04-2026; Real Decreto-ley 26/2026, on 01-10-2026 (or until 02-10-2026).

What happens to my documents?

If you upload your tenancy agreement and the other rental papers, they are sent encrypted to an Amazon Web Services server in Spain, which passes them to an AI model (Claude, by Anthropic, through Amazon Bedrock) within the European Union. The model indicates what each page is and copies only the details the form needs. It is instructed not to copy people's names, DNI or NIE numbers, bank accounts, phone numbers or email addresses, and the server discards any copied text that still contains a DNI, an account, an email address or a phone number. Nothing is stored: the document is processed in memory and discarded. If you prefer not to upload anything, you can type in the details and nothing leaves your device.

What does the 4,99 € pass include?

The pass is valid for any review for 7 days, including the final settlement review, and only in the browser you pay with. In the rental review it shows you the step-by-step calculation of each item and lets you download the PDF report and, if your review has figures for them, the letters about the deposit and the increases. During those days you can redo or correct your review and read up to 15 document packs without paying again. We do not store your review anywhere: on another device, in a private window or if you clear your browsing data, the pass is lost.