Moving into a new apartment block is full of surprises. You may have to adjust to life if you have been used to living in a house or lower storey accommodation, but like everything in life, problems can arise. Here are a few tips on how to solve them.
What’s important to note from the beginning is that moving to Barcelona will almost certainly involve you moving into a block of apartments. There are very few houses or accommodation on just one floor, given the built up metropolis that is Barcelona. Its diverse neighbourhoods and mix of immigrant means that there is an abundance of different nationalities in almost all areas of the city. This makes for a fantastic living space, where you can learn about new cultures, make new friends and acquaintances, and forge friendships for life.
Almost all apartment block buildings in Barcelona are managed by an administrative company, called Administrador de fincas whose job it is to control the joint finances of the building’s residents, look for different estimates if there needs to be any communal repair work done in the building and also chair meetings every once in a while to discuss the living conditions, communicate any new laws or regulations set down by the local council, and act as a platform for each neighbour to voice any concerns he or she may have about the various aspects of life in the building. This administrative service is paid for on an equally divided basis from the individual apartment owners. Often meetings are held in the administrator’s office, but sometimes the meetings are held in the entrance hall to the buildings.
It’s common practice for one neighbour in the building to be voted in as president of the collective neighbours. A vice-president is also usually elected, and this generally moves around each neighbour over the years to establish uniformity and rid any bias. The president is the connection between the administrator and the community of neighbours, and it is his or her job to receive any comments or complaints from any individual neighbour regarding any aspect of life in the building, be it anti-social behaviour, cleanliness of the building stairwell and elevators, working of the communal fittings, etc.
If any neighbour has a problem, it’s usual to go direct to the president and voice these concerns. If you, as a new resident in the apartment block, feel nervous about this procedure, it’s a good idea to find out who the building president is as soon as you arrive, so you already have a familiarity with them in case you do ever need to approach them with a complaint. They will also appreciate the openness and friendliness of the gesture, and will surely be more responsive in case of any dispute you may come across.
It is then the president’s job to communicate with the Administrator who has legal powers to proceed in case of grave incidents, and authority over the building to make decisions for the community if approved on votes. If you fell that your complaint or query is not getting the attention it deserves, you can jump the process and contact the administrator yourself if you prefer. The majority of times this never needs to happen, though and problems are generally resolved quickly and without incident.
Perhaps the best piece of advice, however, is simple dialogue. Sometimes the easiest way to resolve any dispute is to go directly to the root of the problem and talk with the neighbour in a calm and respectful way. Confrontation is never the best policy to adopt, and a friendly word in their ear can usually resolve the problem in a quick and easy way!
David writes about
Luxury Barcelona Real Estate and
Long Term Rentals in Barcelona.
