The Spanish government postponed approval of its housing decree, which had been planned as a major policy move before the summer break, after it became clear the coalition lacked the parliamentary support to advance it. Information from EL PAÍS, the decree was not due to be presented at that Tuesday’s Council of Ministers meeting and was expected to return for discussion in September. The delay reflected disputes among governing partners and parliamentary groups over tenant protections and proposed changes to land law.
The draft decree, presented as a response to Spain’s housing crisis, included a two-year rent freeze that tenants could request until June 30, 2028. It was intended to address rising housing costs, but its announcement exposed deep disagreements within the coalition, particularly with Podemos and Junts, which opposed the terms then under discussion. The basic dispute was how far to restrict rent increases while retaining enough parliamentary backing for the package.
To secure broader support, the Ministry of Housing, headed by Isabel Rodríguez, expanded the proposal to address demands from PNV, Junts, ERC, Bildu and Podemos. The revised package adopted PNV’s approach of treating room rentals more like standard housing contracts, with proposed five- or seven-year terms and price limits in high-demand areas. The rent freeze remained the basic obstacle. After an earlier version was rejected in April, the proposal was revised to offer landlords tax incentives for freezing or reducing rents, a concession to Junts that failed to win Podemos’s support.
The tax approach later appeared in a separate proposed structure reported by Todo Alicante. Deductions could reach 100% when landlords cut rents by more than 5%, stand at 50% when rents were frozen, and fall to 15% when rents rose by 20% or more. The reported structure also set out five-year terms for individual landlords and seven-year terms for corporate landlords. These incentives were part of a contested policy effort, not a substitute for parliamentary approval.
Podemos made removing articles reforming land law a condition for further negotiations. PNV, by contrast, argued that the proposed legal changes should stay in the decree, saying they were intended to provide greater legal certainty, speed up planning and prevent blockages. The party also called for seasonal rentals to be regulated and for guarantees protecting regional autonomy. Those competing demands helped prompt the postponement, as the government sought to avoid another defeat when parliamentary business resumed.
The legislative impasse continued after the initial delay. Merca2 reported that Congress rejected two housing real-decree measures on October 2, 2026. The government had to submit them to the lower chamber for ratification by November 13, with the Permanent Deputation expected to consider them while Congress was not in ordinary session. The Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) said it would vote against the package, making its support a consequential factor in the measures’ prospects.
On October 7, the government approved two housing decrees after earlier versions had failed in Congress, according to later coverage by Moncloa.com. One set of provisions included extraordinary lease extensions of up to two years, a 2% cap on annual rent updates through the end of 2027, and an extension of the suspension of certain evictions involving vulnerable households without alternative accommodation until December 31, 2030. A separate proposal contemplated mandatory contract extensions of five or seven years, with compensation for landlords who declined to renew. These measures followed a separate approval and ratification timetable from the decree postponed before the summer.
The government’s housing response also reached beyond rental rules. At its October 20, 2026, meeting, the Council of Ministers announced €180 million in assistance, allocated according to the affected population and households’ rental-payment burden. The funding was intended to support social and affordable rental housing, as well as land acquisition and development. It could also fund purchases of private-market homes for public housing and guarantees or insurance for young people. The government described the package’s shared objective as advancing access to housing in its official Moncloa announcement.
Other proposals sought to tighten conditions for landlords in designated housing-shortage areas, including through contract extensions and rent limits. They also included eviction restrictions and additional obligations for owners of multiple properties. The measures were framed as tenant protections, but also raised concerns about possible effects on rental supply and investment. The policy debate so spans tenant security and landlord incentives, alongside housing availability and the division of responsibilities between the central government and Spain’s autonomous communities.
The housing decree tested the government’s ability to govern with a fragmented parliamentary majority. Previous attempts to extend rent controls had failed amid opposition from Junts, the People’s Party (PP) and Vox, and later votes showed that parliamentary arithmetic remained decisive. The original delay left impressive changes to rental regulation and land law on hold pending renewed negotiations; subsequent October measures revived parts of the housing agenda but faced their own approval hurdles. Affordability and access to rental housing remained basic points of public debate.
