Spain enacts decree limiting speculative home purchases and evictions
The decree defines a temporary ban on acquiring residential properties for less than 70% of their appraised price, applying to both occupied homes and newly completed units. Exceptions include purchases arising from court proceedings, mortgage foreclosures, and properties earmarked for affordable or social housing for at least five years. It also halts evictions of vulnerable occupants without compensation to owners until the end of 2030 and caps rent increases for large landlords in designated high-tension zones.
Spain's government has issued a royal decree aimed at curbing speculative investment in housing, prohibiting any entity from acquiring a dwelling for less than 70% of its market appraisal. The restriction covers both existing residences and newly finished apartments that have obtained habitability certificates, and it remains in force until a future date determined by proportionality criteria. The law carves out several exemptions, such as acquisitions through judicial processes, mortgage foreclosures, and purchases intended for affordable, social, or care-related housing for a minimum five-year period.
Additionally, the decree suspends evictions of people in vulnerable situations without compensating owners until December 2030, and it imposes a ceiling on rent levels for major landlords in areas declared housing-tension zones, preventing extra charges that would raise rents above the reference index. Large landlords are defined as those holding more than ten residential units, though regional authorities may lower this threshold. The measures also require landlords to extend leases by an extra year for tenants who prove social-economic vulnerability.
