Economic Report of Catalonia 2025 on regulatory simplification and administrative streamlining in the field of housing and urban planning

Dr. Juli Ponce Solé, Professor of Administrative Law and co-director of the Barcelona Chair of Housing Studies (CBEH), has published the article “Regulatory simplification and improvement and administrative streamlining in the field of housing and urban planning” in the monograph of the Economic Report of Catalonia 2025, published by the Chambers of Commerce of Catalonia.

The article draws on a shared diagnosis found in several recent studies carried out by experts in Law, Economics, Architecture, Urban Planning, Housing and Public Management, among which the work of the Barcelona Chair of Housing Studies and the reports of the Expert Commission for the definition of the transformation strategy of the Administration of the Government of Catalonia (CETRA) stand out.

All these studies agree that regulatory simplification and improvement, legal certainty and administrative streamlining constitute an essential reform for the better functioning of the urban planning and housing system in Catalonia. However, the article warns that this reform, although necessary, is not sufficient on its own to solve the housing crisis; it must be accompanied by other measures.

The Economic Report of Catalonia 2025 confirms that the Catalan economy grew by 2.7% in 2025, almost double that of the eurozone (1.4%), although housing has become the main concern of citizens. The rise in residential prices has highlighted the difficulties of urban systems in adapting the supply of affordable housing to growing demand.

Dr. Ponce Solé’s article comes at a time when Catalonia is in the process of drafting the Preliminary Draft Law on the simplification of procedures in the urban and environmental sphere, and aims to encourage reflection and informed debate, characteristic of a living democracy, which may lead to the best possible regulation.

Published by the Chambers of Commerce of Catalonia and prepared by the Economic Studies Department of the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, the Report is a reference document for public administrations and businesses, analysing the state of the economy from a Catalan and territorial perspective. This year’s edition devotes its monograph to “Housing in Catalonia: a social, economic, regulatory and territorial challenge”, with 9 articles by experts.