Pedro Sánchez announces a plan to build 43,000 affordable rental homes with €6 billion in loans and guarantees

Headquarters of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda, Madrid

He did so during his speech at the signing ceremony of the agreements between the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Enterprise and the Official Credit Institute (ICO), in which he stressed the Government's firm will to guarantee access to decent housing as a right enshrined in the Constitution by promoting the development of another 43,000 new homes for social or affordable rentals.

Of the €6 billion to be mobilised in the form of loans and guarantees for public and private developers, €4 billion in loans are linked to the Addendum to the Recovery Plan and will be channelled directly through the ICO for projects aimed at increasing the stock of socially rented or energy-efficient affordable housing via new construction or refurbishment, including financing for the purchase of land or for the building itself. The remaining €2 billion, coming from the General State Budget, will be part of a line aimed at guaranteeing up to 50% of these loans free of charge, promoted by the government and managed through the ICO.

The agreements for the implementation of the facility for the promotion of social housing and for the management of guarantees for the facility for the promotion of social housing were signed by the Minister for Housing and the Urban Agenda, Isabel Rodríguez; the Minister for Economy, Trade and Enterprise, Carlos Cuerpo; the Secretary of State for Housing and the Urban Agenda, David Lucas, and the President of ICO, José Carlos García de Quevedo.

More than 80,000 affordable housing units in development phases

The development of these 43,000 new homes is part of the government's ambitious commitment to increase the stock of affordable public housing in Spain, with the construction or provision of more than 180,000 homes. In fact, there are already more than 80,000 homes in different stages of development, according to the President of the Government at the event held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda, where he stressed the importance of public authorities acting to guarantee citizens' right to housing.

In this regard, he recalled that just over a year ago the Government approved the first Housing Law passed since democracy, which has protected public housing and has contributed to an eight-fold increase in the budgetary resources allocated to housing, promoting the Affordable Rental Housing Plan, the Youth Voucher and the State Housing Plan aid. An additional €2.5 billion have been earmarked to guarantee the purchase of housing for the under 35s and incentives for the purchase of housing in municipalities in rural areas.

"There is still much to be done to make access to decent housing the fifth pillar of our welfare state", said Pedro Sánchez, who explained that "all resources and capacities must be directed towards the clear goal of reaching the European average of 10% of public housing stock as soon as possible", to bring Spain into line with the most advanced countries in Europe in this area. Moreover, in the current context of "dynamic and balanced growth such as has never been seen before in Spain", he urged that "housing should not be a bottleneck in our economy and a restriction to the continuity of this growth".

Public-private partnerships and energy efficiency

In line with this objective, he explained that the new line will allow developers to access financial resources to promote the construction of affordable housing "in sufficient quantity and quality", through the ICO and financial institutions. "We have an experienced and dynamic construction sector. I am convinced that it will take advantage of this opportunity, which will also benefit industries related to construction, and will add so much value in terms of employment and territorial cohesion", he said.

He also detailed that the second strategic axis of the new initiative is linked to energy efficiency, building and rehabilitating "in a sustainable way and guaranteeing climate neutrality". Given that from 2030 this objective will be compulsory in all new buildings, he said that Spain should once again anticipate and demonstrate that it is "a European benchmark in ecological transition and in mitigating the effects of climate change.

Faced with the housing crisis for many families in Spain, the President of the Government stressed the commitment of the Executive to continue working over the next three years of the legislature to guarantee the constitutional mandate of the right to decent housing, which "calls upon all the administrations with competencies in this area". "We have done, we are doing, and we will do everything we can, and more, in terms of housing," he said.

Non official translation