The City Council of Santa Eulària has sanctioned, and charged, more than 140,000 euros to the owner of a house located in a multi-family building in Paris Street in Roca Llisa for having used it for vacation rentals illegally since this practice violates the Subsidiary Norms of the municipality.
As informed by the Consistory in a press release, the initial amount of the fine was 118,000 euros, but due to surcharges and interest the sum has finally reached 143,650 euros. The collection has taken place, as the City Council has learned, after the sale of the property by the owner in order to be able to assume the amount of the penalty.
The Consistory initiated the file as a result of information provided by the Consell Insular de Ibiza, which also initiated a sanctioning procedure in tourism matters. The City Council, on the other hand, has been formulated for a change of use not allowed from residential to tourist housing. The information gathered made it possible to ascertain that that apartment was being offered for tourist rental, and certain services typical of this type of accommodation were also offered.
These practices are an urban infraction for violation of the Subsidiary Norms which establish the prohibition in the municipality of the tourist use of this type of housing.
Open investigation since 2022
The actions of control and investigation began in August 2022 following the communication by the Consell Insular de Eivissa of the possible tourist use in that house, which being located in a multi-family building could be contrary to municipal planning regulations. The municipal technicians and the Local Police were able to verify that the property was being used improperly, which was being offered as a tourist stay through a digital platform for marketing holiday accommodation with the possibility of hiring services such as laundry, room service and others. Likewise, it was possible to determine how the property was being offered for a rent close to 500 euros per day.
With all this evidence and based on the preliminary proceedings, a sanctioning file was initiated for urban infraction for infringement of article 5.2.03 of the Subsidiary Norms which establishes, in paragraph 11, that “in multi-family buildings are expressly prohibited for tourist residential use developed in the form of vacation rentals”.
Likewise, it was proven how all the requirements to consider that a vacation rental use was being made (article 5.2.02) were met, such as the offer of services typical of tourist stays in homes, marketing through travel agencies, intermediary companies or digital platforms, among others.
The initial fine of 118,330 euros corresponds to 75% of the value of the dwelling as stipulated in Article 167.3 of Law 12/2017 of Urbanism of the Balearic Islands.
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