The Catalan government is recasting its plan to restrict speculative property purchases in areas under housing pressure. On 21 October 2026, the government led by Salvador Illa proposed dropping the original cap on the number of homes a landlord could acquire and shifting the bill’s focus from limiting purchases to requiring that acquired properties serve as habitual and permanent homes. The initiative remains subject to political negotiation.
The revised draft would require acquired properties to be used as habitual and permanent residences. It would also allow municipalities to use planning measures to prioritize residential use in designated stressed-market areas, provided they can properly justify them. The proposal is intended to keep homes from being redirected to temporary or tourist accommodation. For large landlords, defined in the draft as owners of more than five homes, the residential-use obligation would apply automatically within 12 months of purchase. The government would so regulate how homes are used after acquisition, rather than cap the number of properties investors can buy.
The change retreats from the original initiative promoted by Comuns, which sought to restrict speculative acquisitions and treat small and large owners differently. Comuns deputy Susanna Segovia said that more than a thousand entire buildings in Barcelona alone changed hands between 2018 and 2025, raising concerns about neighborhood stability and affordability. The revised government proposal would allow investment in stressed areas as long as acquired homes are used for permanent residence. Reporting by elDiario.es also describes regulated-rent requirements for large owners where necessary, rather than a blanket version of the earlier restriction.
The legal debate intensified after Junts and the Partido Popular asked the Consell de Garanties Estatutàries to review the original initiative. The council identified constitutional concerns with provisions intended to prohibit or limit profit-driven acquisitions. The PSC then sought revisions to reduce the risk of a challenge before Spain’s Constitutional Court. The council’s opinion is advisory, but. Jéssica Albiach, Comuns’ president in the Catalan Parliament, argued that it was “not binding” and said the law should still tackle the concentration of housing in relatively few hands.
Political divisions remain sharp. The original measure faced opposition from four parties: Junts and the PP, along with Vox and Aliança Catalana. Critics argued that inadequate housing supply, not speculative purchases, was the basic problem. Junts’ Judith Toronjo warned that the regulation could threaten the right to inherit family homes, while the PP characterized it as an attack on private property rights. ERC supported the initiative but questioned its legal robustness and called for national tax changes, including to VAT and income tax, to discourage speculative buying. The PSC has backed revising the bill while maintaining that market forces alone are not ensuring access to housing.
As of 21 October, the revised text remained under negotiation between the PSC and Comuns. Comuns warned that it would register its original proposal independently in the Catalan Parliament if no agreement was reached before 30 October, the deadline for agreeing amendments to the bill introduced before the summer. The dispute centers on whether legislation should prohibit speculative purchases themselves or require acquired homes to remain in permanent residential use. It also reflects competing views of Catalonia’s housing crisis: Comuns and allied left-wing parties emphasize concentrated ownership and speculation, while Junts, the PP and other right-wing parties point to insufficient supply.
The housing debate is part of a wider package of measures negotiated earlier this year in exchange for budget support. In Barcelona, recent property-related incidents have also drawn attention to pressure on urban housing, including the evacuation of several buildings after a major sinkhole. For more on the disruption, see this report on the evacuation of four buildings in Barcelona’s Putxet district.
Spain’s housing market has changed significantly in recent years, with investment funds and large landlords playing a prominent role, particularly in major cities. National and regional governments have responded with rent controls and tenant protections, alongside measures tied to ownership. The Catalan proposal would make residential use the basic condition attached to acquisitions in designated stressed areas. Its final form will depend on negotiations in the Catalan Parliament, with the 30 October deadline set by Comuns approaching.
