Congress rejects the two housing decrees: these are the measures that disappear

The package of housing measures barely lasted a few days. On Friday, Congress rejected the two royal decree-laws put forward by the Government: the first received 172 votes in favour and 178 against, while the second ended with 166 yes votes and 184 no votes.

Junts joined PP y Vox in rejecting both texts. The Catalan party had previously asked the Government to withdraw them in order to negotiate a new proposal, but the Executive decided to keep them and put them to a vote.

Goodbye to the extraordinary two-year extension

One of the most direct changes affects rental contracts.

The first decree allowed certain tenants to request an extraordinary extension of up to two years for contracts ending before 31 December 2028. With the parliamentary rejection, this measure falls.

The extraordinary cap planned for certain rent updates until the end of 2027 also disappears.

Extraordinary protection against evictions also falls

The first text reinstated and extended until the end of 2030 certain protections against eviction for vulnerable households with no alternative housing.

Application depended on economic, family, and vulnerability criteria, and included compensation for certain property owners. As the decree was not ratified, these provisions are no longer in force.

Seasonal and room rentals

Another part of the decree aimed to introduce new rules to prevent temporary or room rental contracts from being used to circumvent the regulations applicable to regular home rentals.

Among the measures was the possibility of considering a temporary rental as regular if there was no justified and proven reason. It also limited the total rent for rooms compared to the price for the whole property.

These measures also do not continue after the vote.

Tax changes and support for buyers also disappear

The package included a state deduction of 10% of the rent for the main home for certain taxpayers with incomes up to 33,007 euros per year, as well as changes to the tax reductions applicable to property owners.

It also included a tool to help people who could not afford a deposit to buy their first home: a public loan of up to 20% of the value of the property, with a maximum of 50,000 euros.

The decree also included other tax measures related to empty homes, tourist accommodation, and the sale of properties to public entities.

With the text falling, these new measures do not go ahead.

No more automatic and indefinite extensions either

The second decree focused almost entirely on one issue: the continuity of rental contracts.

The proposal allowed, once the five-year contract period was over—or seven years if the owner was a legal entity—for successive extensions for the same periods, unless either party notified their decision to end the contractual relationship.

This second text had the least parliamentary support and was ultimately rejected by 184 votes to 166.

What could happen now?

The Minister of Housing, Isabel Rodríguez, suggested during the debate the possibility of later working on a bill that would allow for the inclusion of clarifications or technical corrections requested by other groups.

The rejection of the two decrees also comes at a time of protests over access to housing, with demonstrations and camps in several cities. In Madrid, hundreds of protesters marched from Puerta del Sol to the area around Congress as the vote took place.