Warnings issued by Bustinduy to PP: No broad exceptions can be used when implementing housing law
Fresh Article:
Listen up, folks! The dude in charge of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs, and Agenda 2023 in Spain, Pablo Bustinduy, just threw some serious shade at the Popular Party. He's telling them they're running out of excuses to apply the housing law in areas where they're in power, especially in tense regions with skyrocketing rent prices, after Spain's Constitutional Court backed most of the law.
Bustinduy shared his thoughts on the social media platform Bluesky, following the Constitutional Court's decision, which mostly dismissed the arguments presented by the PP in their appeal against the 2023 housing law.
The Constitutional Court has endorsed the creation of tense areas where rent prices are regulated, deeming it "not unreasonable or disproportionate." It only scrapped two sections of the final provision of the law, which set requirements for the admission of claims to recover housing or to initiate the enforcement process for auction.
More specifically, the court of guarantees has eliminated the requirement for the claimant to prove that they are a large holder of housing if the defendant is not in a state of economic vulnerability as a prerequisite for a claim to be admitted, measures it deemed as "not reasonable and proportionate."
Now, here are some juicy tidbits you should know:
- Barcelona: We've been witnessing a remarkable rise in rents over the past decade, with short-term rentals (STRs) being blamed for reducing the long-term housing stock. Barcelona will phase out all 10,000 STR licenses by 2028, with no new licenses issued or existing ones renewed, following the Constitutional Court’s ruling.
- Madrid: Areas like Cañada Real, with its 4,500 residents (including 1,800 children) lacking electricity since 2020, remind us of the implications of neglecting tense regions.
- Overall: While the Constitutional Court’s ruling empowers cities to curb STRs, the Housing Law’s rent controls and social housing provisions remain unevenly enforced, particularly in high-demand urban zones.
- Pablo Bustinduy, the Spanish official in charge of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs, and Agenda 2023, has criticized the Popular Party for failing to implement the housing law in regions under their control, especially in tense areas with skyrocketing rent prices, due to the backing of most of the law by Spain's Constitutional Court.
- Following the Constitutional Court's decision, Bustinduy argued on the social media platform Bluesky that the Popular Party's arguments against the 2023 housing law were largely dismissed, although two sections of the final provision of the law were annulled by the court of guarantees.
- In Barcelona, rents have significantly increased over the past decade, with short-term rentals (STRs) being a major factor in the reduction of the long-term housing stock. As a result, the city has decided to phase out all 10,000 STR licenses by 2028, with no new licenses issued or existing ones renewed, following the Constitutional Court’s ruling.
- Despite the Constitutional Court’s ruling empowering cities to curb STRs, the enforcement of the Housing Law's rent controls and social housing provisions remains uneven in high-demand urban zones, as evidenced by areas like Madrid's Cañada Real, where 1,800 children have been living without electricity since 2020.
