The Standing Committee of the Spanish Congress of Deputies confirmed a Housing decree put forward by the government on 12 November. Among other things, it includes protection against evictions and the option to extend certain Tenancy agreements by an exceptional period. A second proposal for the automatic renewal of tenancy agreements, by contrast, failed to win a majority.
According to reports by elDiario.es and the Spanish edition of the Huffington Post, the Basque Nationalist Party cast the deciding vote: it backed the first decree but rejected the second. Both proposals were opposed by the conservative People’s Party, Vox and the Catalan party Junts. The confirmed decree secured a majority of one vote, according to the Huffington Post.
The Standing Committee took the vote because parliament was dissolved after early elections were called. The election is scheduled for 29 November. The day before the vote, trade unions had called for a general strike in support of the right to housing.
The confirmed decree provides for courts to suspend evictions under certain conditions until the end of 2030. Protection may be granted to residents in need who have no alternative accommodation. There are exceptions, for example if a property owner is in need and owns no more than two homes.
According to the government, tenants can apply for an exceptional extension of up to two years, in one-year periods, for agreements due to expire by the end of 2028. Among other conditions, they must pay their rent and must also have done so during the preceding eight months. Landlords must generally agree to the request; exceptions may apply, for example, where they can demonstrate a need to live in the property themselves.
This is distinct from the failed second proposal: it would have provided for repeated automatic renewals of agreements after the relevant minimum term, unless either party gave notice of termination. Landlords giving notice would generally have had to pay compensation to the tenant. This measure was due to come into force only on 15 November and was not confirmed.
The first decree also restricts, until the end of 2030, the purchase of homes for less than 70 per cent of their market value by certain companies and large property owners. Exceptions apply, among other cases, to homes let at affordable or social rents. It also regulates the letting of individual rooms and fixed-term tenancies.
For the purchase of a first home for the buyer’s own use, the package provides, according to the government, a Loan programme with a fund of ten billion euros. The supplementary loans are intended to cover up to 20 per cent of the property’s value, up to a maximum of 50,000 euros. The general decree came into force on 8 October; the vote ensures it remains in force.
Editor: Phillipe Schmidt-Araguin (Article created with AI assistance).