The Atenea association, the think tank promoted by Iván Espinosa de los Monteros, co-founder of Vox and former spokesperson for its parliamentary group, has made public the report “La vivienda solución”, in which it examines the causes of the residential crisis in Spain and concludes that price control policies are behind the reduction in the supply of rental housing.
The document, prepared by Atenea with the participation of the president of Asprima, Carolina Roca, and the CEO of Colliers, Mikel Echavarren, states that the current housing access problem is not only due to a mismatch between supply and demand, but also to a “regulatory bottleneck” that “prevents the market from responding to the real needs of the population”.
In the realm of renting, the report questions the State Law for the Right to Housing and rent control systems, understanding that they cause “a reduction in the available supply and encourage the exit of owners from the traditional market”.
Regarding the housing supply, the text recalls that, after the 2008 financial crisis, the various administrations launched a set of regulatory and financial measures that, “far from resolving the structural problems of the sector, ended up limiting land development, tightening access to credit, and reducing investment in housing”.
Causes
The analysis points, among other elements, to the restrictions on mortgage and developer financing, to the high urbanistic complexity, to the increase in the tax burden, and to the legal uncertainty generated by successive reforms regarding rent and property.
The report underlines that Spain currently lives “a strong imbalance between household formation and new housing construction” and warns that the rise in construction costs, the lack of qualified labor, and the greater demands of the Technical Building Code have contributed to making access to housing even more expensive.
Proposals: new Land Law and more incentives
To address these problems, the document proposes a set of measures. Among them, the approval of a new Land Law that opts for greater urban planning flexibility, the simplification of administrative procedures, the reform of mortgage and rental regulations, as well as tax incentives aimed at stimulating residential development and long-term rentals, stands out.
The report also suggests intensifying the fight against illegal occupation, reinforcing public-private collaboration in the development of affordable housing, and launching vocational training programs linked to the construction sector to alleviate the current labor shortage.
According to its authors, the way out of the housing crisis involves increasing the residential supply within a regulatory framework “stable, predictable, and attractive for investment,” while they consider it essential to restore the confidence of developers, owners, and financial institutions.