Facade works in a homeowners’ community are repair, maintenance, or improvement interventions on the building’s exterior enclosure, which necessarily require approval at a residents’ meeting and the corresponding municipal licence. Since the facade is a structural common element that affects the safety, insulation, and aesthetics of the entire building, no owner may alter it unilaterally without the strict consensus required by law.
If you live in Barcelona and your community is about to undertake facade rehabilitation — whether due to cracks appearing, risk of falling debris, or because you need to address an unfavourable ITE (Technical Building Inspection) — you are probably facing a sea of doubts. We know from experience that proposing a special assessment and getting the whole building to agree is no easy task.
That is why, as technical architects who deal with these situations on a daily basis, in this article we are going to explain in very practical terms what type of work you will be carrying out, what voting majorities you need under the Catalan Civil Code, and how to manage the project with the Ajuntament (City Council) to avoid penalties or work stoppages.
Types of Works on Common Elements: Is It Maintenance or Improvement?
When we are called to assess a facade repair for a homeowners’ community, the first thing we need to clarify at the meeting is the actual objective of the intervention. Legally, repairing structural damage is not the same as adding an aesthetic element, and this determines who pays and how the vote is conducted:
- Maintenance (or conservation) works: These are works strictly necessary to guarantee the safety, watertightness, and habitability of the building. We are talking about sealing structural cracks, resolving water infiltrations, or repairing cladding that is coming loose. Since they are compulsory to keep the building in good condition, all residents must contribute to the special assessment.
- Improvement works: These are interventions that increase the value or aesthetics of the property but are not essential for its safety (for example, replacing the facade cladding with a higher-end design purely for aesthetic reasons). In this case, the law protects dissenting owners if the cost is very high.
Urgent Works and Repairs Arising from the ITE
A very common scenario in Barcelona is having to undertake facade repairs in a homeowners’ community because the building has failed the Inspecció Tècnica d’Edificis (ITE — Technical Building Inspection).
If serious deficiencies exist, such as an imminent risk of debris falling onto the pavement, we are dealing with urgent works. In these extreme situations, the community president or the property manager has the authority to order the immediate repair without waiting to convene a prior meeting (although they must inform the owners as soon as possible).
Furthermore, resolving these deficiencies is the mandatory step required to process and obtain the building’s certificat d’aptitud (certificate of suitability) — a vital document for the legal standing of the property.
Regulations and Majorities for Approving Works in Catalonia
When searching online for information about property law and facade repairs, it is very common to come across data that does not fully apply to our region.
This is because, if your building is in Barcelona or any other Catalan municipality, the main regulations governing voting majorities are not the national Ley de Propiedad Horizontal (LPH — Horizontal Property Act) but rather the Llibre Cinquè del Codi Civil de Catalunya (Book Five of the Catalan Civil Code).
To make it very easy to consult at your next residents’ meeting, we have prepared this summary table with the majorities required depending on the type of work to be carried out:
| Type of facade intervention | Required majority (Catalan Civil Code) | Is payment of the special assessment compulsory? |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance and conservation (cracks, repairing falling debris, resolving ITE deficiencies) | Simple majority (more votes in favour than against, representing the majority of participation shares of those present) | Yes, all owners are obliged to contribute. |
| Energy efficiency (installation of external thermal insulation such as ETICS/SATE, solar panels) | Simple majority | Yes, provided the agreement is legally approved at the meeting. |
| Non-mandatory improvements (purely aesthetic or luxury changes that do not improve habitability or safety) | Four-fifths (4/5) of owners and participation shares | If the amount exceeds 3 ordinary monthly fees, dissenting residents are not obliged to pay. |
As you can see, the Catalan Civil Code greatly facilitates interventions aimed at ensuring maintenance or improving the building’s energy efficiency. By requiring only a simple majority, many rehabilitation projects that were previously blocked by the refusal of a few residents can now move forward.
Permits from the Ajuntament de Barcelona and the Role of the Technical Architect
Approving the works at the residents’ meeting is only half the journey. The next critical step is legalising the intervention with the City Council. In Barcelona, depending on the scale of the works, you will need to submit either a comunicat d’obres (for minor and quick interventions) or a llicència d’obres majors (major works licence), required when altering the structure, changing volumes, or installing large-scale scaffolding on public roads.
To obtain these licences, municipal regulations and the Ley de Ordenación de la Edificación (LOE — Building Regulations Act) require the involvement of a qualified professional. This is where the Technical Architect (or aparejador) comes in. Our role consists of drafting the technical project, taking charge of the site management, and coordinating occupational health and safety. Without this, the Ajuntament will halt the works and the community will face severe fines.
DID YOU KNOW? There are currently powerful grants available for facade rehabilitation. If the works include thermal insulation improvements, you may be eligible for European Next Generation funds or grants from the Consorci de l’Habitatge de Barcelona. To apply, the building usually needs to have been assessed, so it is worth understanding the difference between the ITE and the IEE (Building Evaluation Report).
If your community has received a notice from the council or you need a solid technical project to start requesting quotes from construction companies, the ideal step is to go through this together and map out a safe and trouble-free plan of action.
Sometimes the problem is not the wear of time, but the unilateral action of an owner. Installing an air conditioning compressor on the exterior, enclosing a balcony with aluminium joinery of a different colour, or opening a new flue outlet without consulting anyone is, in every sense of the word, an unauthorised alteration of the facade in a jointly owned property.
Residents Acting Without Permission: What to Do When a Facade Is Altered
You should remember that the facade is an untouchable common element as a whole, and this rule applies both to the main front of the building and to the rear (something we explained in detail in our article on the rehabilitation of light wells).
If a resident makes modifications independently without unanimous approval or the required majority at a meeting, the community has both the right and the duty to act. Here are the recommended steps to resolve the situation:
- Prior amicable notification: The president or property manager must contact the resident, explain the infringement, and ask them to restore the facade to its original state.
- Calling an Extraordinary General Meeting: If the offending party refuses, a meeting must be convened to formally agree on the demand for restitution of the affected common element.
- Formal notice by registered letter (burofax): The meeting’s resolution is sent to the owner, giving them a set deadline to dismantle the unauthorised work, thereby creating a legal record of the warning.
- Initiating legal proceedings: If the deadline passes with no response, the community (with the prior agreement recorded in the minutes) is entitled to file a lawsuit demanding demolition.
Sometimes, an independent technical report helps mediate and avoids going to court. If we can demonstrate with an objective expert assessment that the private works are damaging a structural element or illegally altering the exterior configuration, the owner usually comes to their senses. If you find yourself at this point of deadlock in Barcelona, it makes sense for us to talk so we can issue that report and support the community.
Frequently Asked Questions About Facade Works
Can I refuse to pay a special assessment for facade repairs?
If it is a maintenance or conservation work necessary for safety or to pass the ITE, you cannot refuse — payment is compulsory. You could only be exempt if it concerns a non-necessary aesthetic improvement and the assessment exceeds three ordinary monthly fees.
What happens if the facade is an imminent danger and the president does nothing?
Any owner can urgently notify the situation to the property manager or, in extreme cases, report it to the Ajuntament de Barcelona (Urban Discipline department). If there is a real risk of falling debris, the council can compel the community to act through a subsidiary enforcement order.
Is unanimity required to install ETICS (external thermal insulation) on the building?
No, unanimity is fortunately no longer required. To install systems that improve the building’s energy efficiency, the Catalan Civil Code requires only approval by a simple majority at the residents’ meeting.
Who pays for facade rehabilitation if my flat is a ground-floor commercial unit?
The facade is a structural common element that supports the entire building. Unless your community’s bylaws clearly state that commercial premises are exempt, the owners of ground-floor units must pay the special assessment in accordance with their participation coefficient.
Under the horizontal property law regarding facade works, can I paint my balcony facade a different colour?
No, you cannot alter the exterior aesthetics of the building individually. Any change of colour, enclosure, or modification visible from the outside requires prior approval from the homeowners’ community at a general meeting.
Do You Need Help With Your Community’s Facade?
Dealing with works on a common element always creates tensions, but having the right technical guidance from the very beginning changes everything. At AT — Arquitectes Tècnics, we draft the project, process the licence with the council, and manage the works so that all you need to worry about is enjoying the end result.
If you are in Barcelona or the surrounding area and want to do things properly and without surprises, contact us and we will analyse your case with no obligation.
