Housing cooperatives could boost Spain's affordable home supply, but land hurdles remain
Spanish housing cooperatives are delivering about 30,000 homes, roughly a third of the market, yet they say they could build far more if land and licensing were faster.
Since the post-civil war creation of the National Housing Institute, cooperatives have become a notable part of Spain’s housing sector, currently driving roughly 30,000 free and protected units, or about 30% of the market share. In 2025, 227 cooperative societies were involved in projects with a combined investment of several billion euros. Juan Casares of Concovi says cooperatives lead urban development in many provincial capitals, while Juan José Perucho of AGV warns that output could be three times higher if land allocation and licensing were streamlined.
Cooperatives eliminate developer profit, allowing members to save around 20% compared with traditional builds, yet rising land costs push average cooperative prices to 312,022 euros, or about 3,120 euros per square metre, with Madrid figures higher. Stakeholders blame scarce urbanizable land, slow administrative processes, and the practice of auctioning public land to the highest bidder for the affordability crisis. They call for a new state land law and greater use of public land to accelerate affordable housing.
Why it matters
Cooperatives could markedly increase Spain's affordable housing if land and bureaucracy obstacles are removed.
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