The political situation in Spain dictates that on a topic as transcendental as the housing problem, the two parties forming the Government, PSOE and Sumar, must first reach an agreement, and then try to reach a pact with the rest of the parties that support governability. Moncloa wants to go on vacation by transferring government action and initiative in a context dominated by judicial investigations surrounding the socialists. And in that plan, the last Council of Ministers of the term, next Tuesday, will approve a new decree on Housing which, once again, will entail a new package on that matter. And counting… The first step has been for PSOE and Sumar to reach a pact within the coalition which, among other measures, includes a reinforced extension of rental contracts until July 2028.
The Royal Decree-Law has been negotiated internally within the Government for weeks, as the positions and ambitions of each partner differed. The latest CIS poll, corresponding to July, once again confirmed that Housing is Spain’s main problem: 43% of Spaniards consider it so, three points more than the previous month. In this framework, PSOE and Sumar have agreed on a new extraordinary extension of rental contracts for up to two years, according to sources from the magenta party and confirmed to this newspaper by the Ministry of Housing.
According to what has been agreed and will be contained in the text, this extension can be requested by tenants whose contracts expire until June 30, 2028, which, according to Sumar’s data, expands the potential beneficiaries of this measure by almost one million people. In total (from March 21, 2026, to June 30, 2028), almost four million people and one and a half million households will be able to benefit from the extension.
The text being finalized and which will be approved by the Council of Ministers next Tuesday (after which Pedro Sánchez will review the term) will be structured in two parts. A first part which, according to Housing sources, will contain measures to try to lower prices, provide stability to contracts, and combat rental fraud. It will include, among other initiatives, the regulation of seasonal and room rentals, the extraordinary extension of rentals, the obligation for contracts to be in writing, and IRPF bonuses for those who lower rental prices.
And a second package focused on seeking the mobilization of affordable housing. The measures will revolve around the increase of VAT for tourist apartments to 21% and a tightening of the sanctioning regime for their advertising on platforms, as well as administrative agility measures.
Sumar indicates that, at their proposal, the decree plans to include a proposal to negotiate with parliamentary groups on measures to protect vulnerable families, with the aim of avoiding evictions and ensuring that no one is left without a housing alternative. Because that is the key. The text, once approved by the Government and sent to Congress for validation, must be approved by a majority.
Junts has previously shown its rejection of the housing packages proposed by the coalition; and the PNV has expressed its doubts. These two parties prioritize measures in favor of tenants and small owners and are reluctant to intervene in the private property market.
In fact, Junts has already put its support on hold. “A decree that mixes measures such as covering illegal occupation or opening the door to vulture funds at the expense of the disappearance of small owners will not have the votes of Junts,” said the independentist party. “These are precisely the measures that, until now, have contributed to increasing prices and reducing supply, harming the most vulnerable.” This party criticizes the Government for applying “without method or rigor interventionist policies that do not respect Catalonia’s competencies in this matter.”
They ask for measures such as tax deductions for rent for tenants; deduction of a part of the mortgage payment for small owners; recovery of housing accounts to facilitate savings for young people for their first purchase. “The Spanish Government already knows: if it maintains measures that perpetuate occupations and do not protect either the tenant or the small owner, and does not incorporate Junts’ proposals, it will not have our support.”
“The priority of the Ministry of Housing is to reach an agreement so that the decree approved by the Council of Ministers can be validated in Congress,” sources from this department indicate. “The text will include proposals supported by the different political forces throughout the legislature, with the aim that all groups feel represented.” For now, Podemos is already demanding that the Executive eliminate the reform of the Land Law to sit down and negotiate this package. For the purples, according to their leadership, it is “a red line” and the elimination of the articles affecting the Land Law is an “unavoidable condition” to be able to talk.
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