Catalonia Is Moving Forward with the Processing of a Bill to Limit Speculative Housing Purchases
The Parliament of Catalonia has taken another step in processing the proposed law aimed at limiting speculative housing purchases in areas with a strained residential market. The initiative involves amending the Consolidated Text of the Catalan Urban Planning Law, approved by Legislative Decree 1/2010 of August 3, and has been submitted for consideration by a single reading before the plenary session.
The reform seeks to empower municipalities to introduce restrictions on the intended use of certain properties through urban planning regulations. According to available information on the draft legislation, the main objective is to ensure that properties acquired in these areas are used as the primary residence of the buyer, close family members, or for long-term rental, limiting other uses such as tourist rentals, seasonal rentals, or sales for purely speculative purposes.
A measure linked to areas of strained housing market
The initiative falls within the framework of the areas of strained housing market established in Law 12/2023, of May 24, on the right to housing. This national law allows the competent authorities to declare certain territorial areas as strained when there is a particular risk of insufficient supply of affordable housing for the resident population.
In Catalonia, the Generalitat (Catalan government) announced the expansion of these areas to include 271 municipalities, where approximately 90% of the Catalan population resides. The declaration of these areas allows for the application of rent control measures as provided for by applicable national and regional regulations.
Potential effects for buyers, owners, and investors
If approved in terms similar to those currently in place, the regulation could significantly alter the planning of real estate transactions in Catalonia. The main transactions affected would be those in which the property is not acquired for primary residence or permanent rental, but for other economic or asset-related purposes.
Among the scenarios that could be affected are the acquisition of homes for short-term resale, purchases intended for tourist or seasonal rentals, the acquisition of entire residential buildings, and certain investment strategies based on the transformation and rapid sale of the asset.
Family transactions, second homes, acquisitions by legal entities, and inheritances will also require careful analysis, insofar as the final text determines whether these situations are subject to specific limitations, exceptions, or transitional provisions.
Legal Framework: Private Property, Social Function, and Legal Certainty
From a legal perspective, the proposed law raises a fundamental debate about the balance between the right to private property, its social function, and the constitutional mandate to promote access to decent housing. Article 33 of the Constitution recognizes the right to private property and inheritance, but also establishes that the social function of these rights defines their scope in accordance with the law. For its part, Article 47 of the Spanish Constitution imposes on public authorities the duty to regulate land use in accordance with the general interest to prevent speculation.
The key legal question will be whether the restrictions that are ultimately approved are proportionate, sufficiently specific, territorially justified, and compatible with the distribution of powers between the State, the Generalitat (the regional government of Catalonia), and the municipalities. It will also be relevant to examine whether the chosen regulatory technique—urban planning modifications and their implementation through planning instruments—offers sufficient guarantees from the perspective of legal certainty, equality, and the protection of legitimate expectations.
A law not yet in force
It is important to emphasize that the proposed law has not yet been definitively approved. The text may undergo changes during its parliamentary process, and its practical application will foreseeably depend on the final content of the law and its eventual implementation by the municipalities through planning regulations or ordinances.
Therefore, real estate transactions currently under review in Catalonia should be analyzed on a case-by-case basis, especially when they affect municipalities designated as areas of high residential demand or when the intended use of the property is neither a primary residence nor permanent rental housing.
At Manubens Abogados, we will continue to monitor the evolution of this legislative initiative and its potential effects on the real estate market, contracting, asset planning, and the actions of local authorities.
