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Rising rental and housing costs are pricing many Spaniards out
of the market, despite a recent economic boom. Incomes have
failed to keep up. Analysts say tourism and population growth in
cities driven by immigration have further strained supply.
The new plan, worth 7 billion euros ($8.23 billion), triples
government investment in public housing over the next four
years. It ensures that subsidized housing cannot be reclassified
after a few years. It also includes help for young renters and
home buyers.
“It is a significant step forward. For the first time in
decades, there is a serious budgetary commitment,” said Raluca
Budian, associate director of the Observatory for Decent Housing
at the Barcelona-based Esade business school.
About 40% of the money will be earmarked for growing the public
housing supply, which Spain lacks compared to the European
average, while 30% will be set aside for property renovations,
the government said. That will include funds for making homes
more energy-efficient and building in depopulated parts of the
country.
The rest will go toward subsidies, with a focus on young people.
“The public is demanding an agreement to address the main
problem currently affecting them,” Housing Minister Isabel
Rodríguez said Tuesday. Housing routinely comes up as Spaniards'
top concern, according to state pollster CIS.
Housing costs in Spain rose nearly 13% year-on-year at the end
of 2025, according EU statistics agency Eurostat.
Spain ranks near the bottom of Organization for Economic
Co-operation and Development countries with public housing for
rent, with under 2% of available supply. The OECD average is 7%.
In France, it is 14%, Britain 16% and the Netherlands 34%.
In the past, Spain built housing with public funds that later
passed into private ownership. Once they were sold, they
disappeared from the public housing stock.
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Associated Press journalist Joseph Wilson contributed from
Barcelona.
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