Greenpeace Spain presented the concept Tu llave de la vivienda digna on 10 November 2026. The environmental organisation is calling for new construction to become the last resort, with three measures used first: bringing vacant homes into use, targeted expansion of the social housing stock, and comprehensive energy-efficiency renovations of existing homes. Greenpeace published the key points at the same time in 20minutos.
To explain its position, Greenpeace points to the contrast between scarce and expensive housing in urban areas and high levels of vacancy. According to data from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística remove 2021 Census there are Spain around 3.8 million unused homes. At the same time, the share of social housing is well below the level in many EU countries, according to summaries by the Observatorio de Vivienda . In the organisation’s view, bringing existing housing into use and renovating it can ease social pressures and advance climate protection.
Specifically, the proposal aims to renovate just under 10 million homes in total, in stages, by 2040. Greenpeace estimates that this will require an average of €6 billion in annual public funding, intended to stimulate private investment. The organisation identifies the removal of climate-damaging subsidies, continuation and refinement of tax incentives, and the use of European and national financial instruments as sources of funding. The report’s calculations quantify expected household energy savings and cite avoided CO₂ emissions.
Politically, the demands touch on ongoing debates about regulating the rental market, taxing properties left vacant over the long term, and the role of large property owners. Open questions include the instruments for implementation, priorities in the state budget, and the respective responsibilities of the state, Autonomous Communities and municipalities. Greenpeace also announced mobilisations for 11 November 2026. Whether the proposals lead to legislative initiatives will depend on concrete deadlines, budgets and review mechanisms.
The figures and targets cited are based on Greenpeace’s latest publication and official statistics. The figure of 3.8 million vacant homes comes from the 2021 Census by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística. Information on the low share of social housing is based on reports by the Observatorio de Vivienda. The key points were published in 20minutos on the same day as the concept was presented in Spain.
Editor: Phillipe Schmidt-Araguin (Article created with AI assistance).