The Law on the Right to Housing Will Enter Into Force on May 26, 2023 After Its Publication Today in the Official State Gazette (BOE).
What are the main points of interest of this Law?
- Regulation of evictions: The law implements comprehensive measures to regulate evictions, ensuring fair treatment for tenants and promoting equitable outcomes in housing disputes.
- Possibility to levy more taxes on empty houses: The law grants authorities the power to impose higher taxes on unoccupied houses, aiming to address housing shortages and encourage property owners to make their properties available for occupation.
- Confirmation of a ceiling on the updating of rents: The law establishes a definite upper limit on rent increases, providing stability and protection for tenants against excessive rental hikes.
- Tax incentives for homeowners: The legislation includes tax incentives designed to support homeowners, fostering the development and maintenance of housing units and assisting individuals in their journey towards homeownership.
- Creation of a reference index for the updating of rents different from the CPI: The law introduces a dedicated reference index for updating rents, distinct from the Consumer Price Index (CPI), offering a transparent and fair mechanism to adjust rents in accordance with market conditions.
This law represents a groundbreaking milestone as the first national legislation to regulate the right to housing since the Constitution’s approval.
Will it be applied differently in each region of Spain?
It will bring rules to be applied by the Autonomous Communities, which have complete competence in housing matters.
That is why, during the whole process of processing the Law, the regions in which the PP governs (Madrid, Andalusia, Murcia, Galicia, and Castile and Leon) have shown themselves to be against the new regulation. In fact, the communities led by the PP or the PP candidates to govern them after May 28 have advanced their intention to apply only the measures required by the State.
What are the main objectives pursued by the law?
- To establish a basic regulation of the rights and duties of citizens concerning housing,
- To facilitate access to decent and adequate housing for people who struggle to access housing under market conditions.
- To provide effective instruments to ensure the functionality, safety, universal accessibility, and habitability of housing, thus guaranteeing the dignity and health of the people living there.
- To define the fundamental aspects of state planning and programming in housing, to favor the exercise of the constitutional right throughout the territory.
- To regulate the basic legal regime of public housing parks, ensuring their development, protection, and efficiency to attend to those sectors of the population with greater access difficulties.
- To favor the development of housing typologies appropriate to the different forms of coexistence and habitation, favoring the adaptation to household dynamics and current demands.
- Improve protection in housing purchase and rental operations, introducing minimum information necessary to provide security and guarantees.
Have questions about the new Law on the Right to Housing?
Get in touch now to find out how our expert team at CostaLuz Lawyers can help you.
Maria Luisa Castro
