The Catalan government is taking control of thousands of empty flats. President Salvador Illa announced the region will manage 13,000 SAREB properties and 300 plots of land. The agreement aims to tackle the housing crisis head-on.
Illa revealed the deal during Tuesday’s General Policy Debate in Parliament. The announcement came whilst responding to ERC parliamentary leader Josep Maria Jove, who’d raised the SAREB issue. Junts has been demanding action on these flats for months.
Housing Minister Silvia Paneque sealed the agreement with Spain’s Housing Ministry just before the parliamentary session started. The protocol will be signed within two weeks, Illa confirmed. It’s designed as a four-year programme.
The president emphasised his government’s core belief. Housing is a right, not a business. This move recovers properties from the 2008 financial crisis. It’ll return them to families who actually need somewhere to live.
SAREB stands for Sociedad de Gestion de Activos Procedentes de la Reestructuracion Bancaria. It’s Spain’s bad bank, created to absorb toxic property assets after the financial crash. These flats have sat empty whilst people struggle to find homes.
Moreover, the agreement covers both residential units and development land. The 300 plots could allow for new construction projects. This adds flexibility to Catalonia’s housing strategy.
The deal follows Illa’s massive housing announcement from earlier this week. He unveiled a public-private plan to mobilise land and build 210,000 flats. That came on top of his commitment from last year’s debate.
Back then, he promised 50,000 public flats by 2030. The investment totals over 4,000 million euros. According to government data, 22,000 of those units are already in production. Now the 210,000 figure adds to that total.
Spain’s Housing Ministry stated the model is open to all regions. Any autonomous community can sign up to guarantee the right to housing. The protocol will identify the full inventory of available properties.
The agreement builds on July’s Council of Ministers decision. That provided for transferring SAREB assets to SEPES, the state land company. Now Catalonia gets to manage a chunk through usufruct rights.
The covenant will specify several key details. It’ll outline the usufruct duration, distribution of costs, and rehabilitation needs. It’ll also establish the affordable rental regime and coordinate information systems between administrations.
Housing has become Illa’s flagship policy. The emergency situation demands bold action. These 13,000 SAREB flats represent immediate relief whilst longer-term construction projects move forward.
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