Catalonia sets limits on speculative housing purchases: everything you need to know

The Government of the Generalitat, led by Salvador Illa, and the parliamentary group of the Comuns signed an agreement on 19 February 2026 to amend the Urban Planning Law of Catalonia. The objective: to give municipalities the tools to limit the purchase of housing for purely speculative purposes. We explain, step by step and in clear terms, what the measure consists of, who it affects and when it will come into force.

Important note: at the time of publication of this article, the bill still has to be approved by the Parliament of Catalonia. The text describes the agreement signed and the proposal submitted, not a law already in force.

Speculative purchase: what exactly are we talking about?

When we talk about the speculative purchase of housing, we refer to the acquisition of properties not to live in them, but to obtain the maximum possible economic return: reselling them at higher prices, renting them at free-market prices without limits, or allocating them to tourist or seasonal rentals.

This dynamic reduces the supply of housing available for people who need it to live, and puts upward pressure on both purchase and rental prices.

The reform does not prohibit the purchase of flats. What it does is condition the purchase on the use that must be given to it, especially in areas where market pressure is more intense.

Which municipalities are affected?

The measure will apply to the 271 Catalan municipalities declared as stressed residential market areas, where 90% of the population of Catalonia lives. This declaration, which is valid for three years and renewable annually, identifies the places where prices have risen disproportionately in relation to the population’s income.

But there is a crucial nuance: its application will not be automatic. Each municipality will have to decide whether to draw up and approve a special urban planning plan to activate the restrictions. This initiative may come from the municipal government itself or from the opposition, subject to prior approval by the municipal plenary session. In addition, representative entities of the right to housing —cooperatives, tenants’ associations, residents’ associations— may urge the administration to begin its processing.

Who can buy and for what purpose? The new rules

In the municipalities that activate the special plans, homes may only be acquired for two purposes: habitual residence or rental at index price — regulated price. Free-market rental, seasonal rental and tourist rental are prohibited in new acquisitions.

Large-scale property owners (5 or more properties owned in Catalonia)

• They will not be able to acquire individual homes in stressed areas, either as individuals or as companies, unless it is for their own habitual residence.
• They will be able to buy entire buildings, but with the obligation to allocate them entirely to residential rental with capped prices.
• If a large-scale property owner who is an individual wants to buy a home to live in, they may do so, but they must sign a responsible declaration before a notary and register as a resident in that home within a maximum period of 12 months from the purchase, extendable by up to 6 additional months for justified reasons — job relocation, refurbishment works —.

Small property owners (fewer than 5 properties in Catalonia)

• They may buy up to 4 homes in a stressed area, provided they allocate them to their own use, to a family member up to the second degree — parents, children, siblings, grandparents or grandchildren — or to rental at index price.
• They may not allocate them to tourist or seasonal rental.
• They may buy a second residence in another municipality different from that of their habitual residence, but they may not allocate it to rental or tourist accommodation either.

Inheritances

• Homes received by inheritance are exempt from the purchase limitations.
• However, if they are not used as the habitual residence of the heir or of a first-degree family member, they must be put up for rent with a capped price. This prevents inheritance from being used as a way to circumvent the restrictions.

Exemptions

• Public administrations, foundations and third-sector entities that allocate the homes to protected, social or affordable rental are exempt from the restrictions.

What changes compared to the previous legal framework?

Until now, the Urban Planning Law of Catalonia —included in Legislative Decree 1/2010— did not provide for any mechanism that would allow municipalities to condition the purchase of a home according to the use that was to be given to it. There were partial tools, such as the right of first refusal and withdrawal or controls on rents, but there was no legal figure that acted on the purchase and sale transaction itself according to its purpose.

With this reform, for the first time:

• Municipalities will be able to condition the purchase of homes on the declared use —living in them or regulated rental— through special urban planning plans.
• There will be a clear legal framework that supports municipal action with real effects on the supply of residential housing.
• The social function of housing, recognised in the Spanish Constitution and in the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia, is explicitly invoked as the basis of the measure.
• Catalonia would become the first autonomous community in Spain to have a specific tool of this kind.

Sanctions: up to 1.5 million euros

The reform incorporates a strengthened sanctioning regime within the Urban Planning Law, with new cases classified as very serious:

• Not allocating the home to the use declared at the time of purchase.
• Simulating legal transactions to circumvent the legal restrictions.
• Fraud of law to avoid being classified as a large-scale property owner.

The sanctions may reach up to 1.5 million euros. To support this, the Government is training around sixty housing inspectors, out of a total of 100 planned, one year after the corresponding sanctioning regime was approved.

When will it come into force?

The bill will be processed in the Parliament of Catalonia through the single-reading procedure, significantly faster than the ordinary legislative process. The objective is to obtain sufficient support —among others, from ERC— to approve it and for it to come into force before the end of the first half of 2026.

From then on, each municipality will have to draw up and approve its special urban planning plan. The Comuns expect most municipalities to have launched it before the 2027 municipal elections.

Reminder: until the law is approved in Parliament and each municipality approves its special urban planning plan, the restrictions will not be effectively applicable.

In summary: the main changes

To make it easier to understand, here are the key points of the reform:

• It affects the 271 municipalities declared stressed residential market areas —90% of the Catalan population—.
• In stressed areas, newly purchased homes may only be allocated to habitual residence or rental at index price.
• Large-scale property owners —5 or more properties— will not be able to buy individual flats in stressed areas, except for their own residence.
• Small property owners may own up to 4 homes in a stressed area for their own use or regulated rental.
• Inheritances are exempt, but inherited properties that are not used as a residence must be rented at a capped price.
• Sanctions for non-compliance may reach up to 1.5 million euros.
• Application will not be automatic: each municipality must approve its special urban planning plan.
• Catalonia would be the first autonomous community in Spain with a specific tool of this kind.