Spain Approves Housing Decrees Amid Snap Election Call

The Spanish government is set to approve two housing decrees on Tuesday to implement rent caps, a temporary ban on evictions, and limits on corporate residential property purchases. These measures follow a parliamentary rejection that prompted Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to call a snap election for November 29. The decrees will be sent to a reduced body of 69 caretaker lawmakers for temporary approval until a new parliament is formed.

The political crisis intensified following nationwide protests sparked by the attempted eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal in Madrid. The Socialist government maintains that rent controls are necessary to combat a crisis where prices rose three times faster than wages last year. The Bank of Spain estimates the national housing deficit at 750,000 homes.

Opposition leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo and the People's Party argue that rent caps choke housing supply. Feijoo has pledged to streamline urban planning and build 250,000 new homes annually if elected. Culture Minister Ernest Urtasun stated that the protections in the new decrees will be on a par with, or even exceed, previous agreements.