The minutes of a residential community general meeting are the document that records the resolutions adopted. Without correctly drafted minutes, resolutions can be challenged or lack legal effect. Yet many property managers — particularly those new to the sector — are uncertain about what must be included and how to draft them properly.

What are the minutes of a general meeting?

The minutes are the official document that records what took place at a general meeting: who attended, what was discussed, and what was agreed. They carry evidential weight before third parties and the courts, and they are the starting point for executing any community resolution.

The obligation to keep minutes of every general meeting is set out in Article 19 of Spain’s Horizontal Property Law (LPH).

What must the minutes include as a matter of law?

Under Article 19 of the LPH, the minutes must contain:

The date and location of the meeting
The person who called the meeting
Whether it is an ordinary or extraordinary meeting
Whether it is the first or second call
A list of all attendees and represented owners, with their respective participation quotas
The agenda
The resolutions adopted, indicating the votes in favour and against, and the names of those who voted against or abstained

In addition, the minutes must be closed with the signatures of the chair and the secretary. Without these signatures, the minutes have no formal validity.

Common errors that invalidate minutes

1. Failing to specify the quorum

For each resolution, the minutes must reflect that the required quorum was reached for the type of resolution in question (simple majority, three-fifths majority, unanimity, and so on). If this is unclear, the resolution may be challenged.

2. Vague wording of resolutions

«It was agreed to hire someone to fix the lift» is not acceptable. The correct form is: «It is resolved by simple majority to engage Company X for preventive lift maintenance at a cost of €Y per annum, charged to the community’s reserve fund.»

3. Omitting votes against

Article 19 of the LPH requires that the names of owners who vote against or abstain be recorded. Omitting this detail may deprive those owners of their right to challenge the resolution.

4. Not listing delinquent owners

Owners with outstanding service charges may attend the meeting but may not vote. They must appear in the minutes as «attendees without voting rights» — they should not simply be omitted.

5. Signing out of time

The minutes must be closed and signed within the ten calendar days following the meeting. After that deadline they remain valid, but the delay may give rise to complaints.

How long is there to send the minutes to owners?

The LPH does not specify a deadline for distributing the minutes to all owners, but the accepted and recommended practice is to do so within ten days of signing. Owners are entitled to receive a copy.

In digitalised communities, the platform can send the minutes automatically to all owners as soon as the property manager signs them, with delivery confirmation.

Template for residential community meeting minutes

Below is a basic template that you can adapt to your community:

MINUTES OF THE [ORDINARY / EXTRAORDINARY] GENERAL MEETING OF THE
RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITY OF [NAME OR ADDRESS]

In [city], on [day] [month] [year], at [time], the owners of the Residential Community
located at [full address] convened at [venue / remote platform], at [first / second] call.

ATTENDEES:
[Name] — Flat/Unit [X] — Quota: X.XX% — [Present / Represented by ___]
[...]
Owners without voting rights (outstanding charges):
[Name] — Flat/Unit [X]

TOTAL QUOTAS REPRESENTED: XX.XX%

AGENDA:

1. READING AND APPROVAL OF THE PREVIOUS MINUTES
[Text of the resolution. Votes in favour: X (XX.XX%). Votes against: X. Abstentions: X.]

2. [AGENDA ITEM]
[Text of the resolution. Votes in favour: X (XX.XX%). Votes against: X ([Name]). Abstentions: X.]

[...]

There being no further business, the meeting was closed at [time].

The Secretary-Administrator          The Chair
[Name and signature]                 [Name and signature]

How should minutes be retained?

Minutes must be kept in the community’s book of minutes, which may be in paper or digital form. The property manager is required to retain all minutes for at least five years (although best practice is to retain them indefinitely).

With a digital management platform such as FixrOS, minutes are generated automatically at the close of the meeting, signed digitally by the chair and the secretary, and stored securely in the cloud with controlled access for all owners.

When can a resolution be challenged?

Resolutions adopted at a general meeting may be challenged before the courts within the following time limits (Article 18 LPH):

3 months from adoption of the resolution, for resolutions that are contrary to the law or to the community’s bylaws
1 year for all other challengeable resolutions

Well-drafted minutes are the best defence against a challenge: if it is clear who voted for what and with what quorum, it is very difficult for a claim to succeed.

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Reference source: Horizontal Property Law, official text on the BOE

Conclusion

Drafting minutes correctly is not complicated if you follow a standard template and ensure all elements required by the LPH are included. The greatest risk lies in improvisation and in setting out resolutions in vague terms.

If you would like to automate the generation of minutes across your communities, request a FixrOS demo and we will show you how the minutes produce themselves from the record of the meeting.

Tags: actas de junta administración de fincas administrador de fincas comunidad de propietarios gestión inmobiliaria libro de actas LPH modelo de acta propietarios secretario de comunidad