Addressing Maintenance Challenges and Reputational Risks in Spanish Real Estate: A Strategic Role for Facility Managers
This study addresses a critical deficiency in real estate management by examining how contractual arrangements between property owners and facility managers (FMs) can mitigate reputational damage arising from third-party liability incidents. While Spanish regulations impose comprehensive conservatio...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Urban Science |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2413-8851/9/7/250 |
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| author | Luis Eduardo Bardón Rubio Antonio Eduardo Humero Martín |
| author_facet | Luis Eduardo Bardón Rubio Antonio Eduardo Humero Martín |
| author_sort | Luis Eduardo Bardón Rubio |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This study addresses a critical deficiency in real estate management by examining how contractual arrangements between property owners and facility managers (FMs) can mitigate reputational damage arising from third-party liability incidents. While Spanish regulations impose comprehensive conservation and maintenance duties on property owners, current contractual frameworks inadequately protect owners from reputational risks when damages occur due to FMs’ negligence or operational failures. This conceptual study employs a systematic analysis of 16 Spanish regulations governing real estate conservation and maintenance duties, complemented by an examination of the statutory contract law and a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis to evaluate the proposed solutions. The analysis reveals four distinct liability attribution blocks, ranging from quasi-objective owner liability to full objective installation holder liability. Current service contracts between owners and FMs provide insufficient reputational protection, as civil liability remains with the property owners regardless of the FMs’ performance. This study identifies specific contractual mechanisms—combining statutory work contracts with representative mandates and installation ownership transfers—that effectively redirect tort liability from owners to FMs. While this study focuses on Spanish regulatory frameworks as a methodologically necessary foundation for theoretical development, the conceptual framework provides transferable mechanisms for adaptation to other civil law jurisdictions. This study constitutes the first comprehensive analysis bridging legal architecture and facility management to propose novel liability transfer mechanisms within established frameworks. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b1b70a71fa064f0d837463c7b28d2a51 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2413-8851 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Urban Science |
| spelling | doaj-art-b1b70a71fa064f0d837463c7b28d2a512025-08-20T03:56:46ZengMDPI AGUrban Science2413-88512025-07-019725010.3390/urbansci9070250Addressing Maintenance Challenges and Reputational Risks in Spanish Real Estate: A Strategic Role for Facility ManagersLuis Eduardo Bardón Rubio0Antonio Eduardo Humero Martín1Department of Construction and Architectural Technology, School of Architecture, Technical University of Madrid, 28040 Madrid, SpainDepartment of Construction and Architectural Technology, School of Architecture, Technical University of Madrid, 28040 Madrid, SpainThis study addresses a critical deficiency in real estate management by examining how contractual arrangements between property owners and facility managers (FMs) can mitigate reputational damage arising from third-party liability incidents. While Spanish regulations impose comprehensive conservation and maintenance duties on property owners, current contractual frameworks inadequately protect owners from reputational risks when damages occur due to FMs’ negligence or operational failures. This conceptual study employs a systematic analysis of 16 Spanish regulations governing real estate conservation and maintenance duties, complemented by an examination of the statutory contract law and a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis to evaluate the proposed solutions. The analysis reveals four distinct liability attribution blocks, ranging from quasi-objective owner liability to full objective installation holder liability. Current service contracts between owners and FMs provide insufficient reputational protection, as civil liability remains with the property owners regardless of the FMs’ performance. This study identifies specific contractual mechanisms—combining statutory work contracts with representative mandates and installation ownership transfers—that effectively redirect tort liability from owners to FMs. While this study focuses on Spanish regulatory frameworks as a methodologically necessary foundation for theoretical development, the conceptual framework provides transferable mechanisms for adaptation to other civil law jurisdictions. This study constitutes the first comprehensive analysis bridging legal architecture and facility management to propose novel liability transfer mechanisms within established frameworks.https://www.mdpi.com/2413-8851/9/7/250tort liabilityreputational damageownerfacility managerreal estateconservation |
| spellingShingle | Luis Eduardo Bardón Rubio Antonio Eduardo Humero Martín Addressing Maintenance Challenges and Reputational Risks in Spanish Real Estate: A Strategic Role for Facility Managers Urban Science tort liability reputational damage owner facility manager real estate conservation |
| title | Addressing Maintenance Challenges and Reputational Risks in Spanish Real Estate: A Strategic Role for Facility Managers |
| title_full | Addressing Maintenance Challenges and Reputational Risks in Spanish Real Estate: A Strategic Role for Facility Managers |
| title_fullStr | Addressing Maintenance Challenges and Reputational Risks in Spanish Real Estate: A Strategic Role for Facility Managers |
| title_full_unstemmed | Addressing Maintenance Challenges and Reputational Risks in Spanish Real Estate: A Strategic Role for Facility Managers |
| title_short | Addressing Maintenance Challenges and Reputational Risks in Spanish Real Estate: A Strategic Role for Facility Managers |
| title_sort | addressing maintenance challenges and reputational risks in spanish real estate a strategic role for facility managers |
| topic | tort liability reputational damage owner facility manager real estate conservation |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2413-8851/9/7/250 |
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