The Barcelona Chair of Housing Studies publishes the fourth issue of its monthly newsletter Claus d’Habitatge

The Barcelona Chair of Housing Studies (CBEH) has published issue number 4 of its newsletter «Claus d’Habitatge», corresponding to October 2026. This edition includes an in-depth analysis of the housing situation in Catalonia by Fernando P. Méndez, a property, commercial and movable assets registrar and a doctor in Law and Political Science.

According to Méndez, housing is unaffordable, especially for young people and the immigrant population, in the main cities, their metropolitan areas and tourist zones. The proximate causes are, on the one hand, a supply crisis and, on the other, a purchasing-power crisis affecting a substantial part of potential demand. The author notes that current legislation hinders housing production (prior authorisations, a 30% reserve of social housing in Catalonia) and its commercialisation (property transfer tax above 11%, and 20% for housing investments), in addition to the high cost of materials and staff shortages. The consequence is that each year less than half of the housing demanded is produced, which causes prices to rise vertiginously.

Méndez also warns that the lease contract is seriously unbalanced in favour of tenants (price caps, bans on evictions, obstacles to enforcing them), which contracts supply. He further considers that Catalonia has stood out for adopting measures aimed at restricting the functioning of the market, such as the direct application of Law 12/2023, the declaration of most of the territory as a stressed housing market area, and the approval of two decrees pending convalidation. His conclusion is clear: “Public administrations cannot replace the market. On the contrary, they must ensure that it works efficiently and complement it through social housing.”

In addition to the main article, the newsletter includes a section of relevant news on housing and the city, covering topics such as the CIS Housing Barometer 2026, housing sales, the re-approval of housing decrees by Congress, warnings from the Property Chambers, Barcelona City Council’s rehabilitation grants, the creation of the Housing Emergency Fund by the Generalitat, and the initial approval of the increase in property tax (IBI) on tourist flats in Barcelona. It also gathers the most recent legislation (Royal Decree-Laws 28/2026 and 29/2026, the European Commission Recommendation on housing affordability and supply, and the correction of errors in Law 10/2026 on the Generalitat’s budget), as well as notable case law from the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court.

The newsletter is completed with a section on studies and reports (the Mari Carmen case, the effort of Barcelona households to pay rent, the evolution of housing prices in the EU, and housing taxation in Spain), and with an agenda of congresses, conferences and activities, including the CBEH’s II International Congress on Housing and the City (23–24 November 2026), the HOWS Barcelona | Housing World Summit, the conference «Descarbonitzant l’Arquitectura 2026», and the conference on the impact of housing research carried out at the UPC.

The «Claus d’Habitatge» newsletter can be consulted on the Chair’s website. We encourage you to read it, share it and send us your comments.