The Consumers and Users Organization (OCU) has filed a complaint with the Ministry of Social Rights, Consumption, and Agenda 2030 against the real estate agency Engel & Völkers, understanding that it applies a practice contrary to the Urban Leasing Law (LAU): transferring to future tenants the payment of the fees for the management service contracted by the owner.
According to the organization in a statement, the company requires those who want to rent a home to pay fees equivalent to one month's rent plus VAT, using a contract model called "Service Provision Assignment."
For the OCU, the services included in that document correspond to the usual real estate intermediation, such as the search and presentation of homes, the organization of visits, the collection and analysis of solvency documentation, the negotiation of lease conditions, or the delivery of the property to the tenant.
The entity emphasizes that the LAU expressly states that the costs of real estate management and contract formalization must be borne by the landlord, and not by the tenant.
However, the OCU reproaches that the examined contract passes these fees onto the tenant, setting them based on the monthly rent and requiring their payment once the owner accepts the rental offer.
MANDATORY SUBSCRIPTION AND ADDITIONAL CLAUSES
From the consumer organization, they warn that the payment of these fees becomes an indispensable condition for the potential tenant's application to even be presented to the owner, which, in their opinion, eliminates any appearance of voluntariness in contracting the service.
In addition, the OCU highlights that the contract includes other clauses that reinforce this mandatory nature, such as payment in cases of withdrawal or modification of the offer, or its application if the consumer ends up renting the property later.
The organization maintains that the explicit reference in the contract stating that the services provided "do not constitute real estate management or contract formalization" does not change the true nature of the activity being carried out.
In the complaint, the violation of the General Law for the Defense of Consumers and Users is also alleged, considering that the economic interests of consumers are harmed and their access to the rental market is improperly conditioned.
REQUEST FOR INSPECTION AND SANCTIONS
Given the extent of this contractual model and the presence of the Engel & Völkers network in numerous locations, the OCU has requested the intervention of the General Administration of the State due to the possible harm to consumers from different autonomous communities.
In the document sent to Consumption, the entity requests the opening of inspection and investigation proceedings, the immediate cessation of charging tenants for real estate management or rental contract formalization fees, and, in case the violations are confirmed, the imposition of sanctions in accordance with the severity of the facts.