Spain PM aims to ban non-EU citizens from buying homes
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The moves to limit and potentially prohibit foreign acquisitions is part of an attempt to fight a growing housing crisis.
PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
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MADRID – Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will propose a ban on people from outside the European Union buying homes in the country, part of a broader attempt to confront a housing shortage.
The government “will propose prohibiting non-EU foreigners from buying houses in our country, when neither they nor their families live here, and therefore they are speculating”, Mr Sanchez said on Jan 19 at a Socialist Party rally.
He said non-residents from outside the EU bought about 23,000 houses and flats in Spain in 2023 – still a fraction of the current estimated shortage. The statement on Jan 19 takes a recent announcement by Mr Sanchez a step further.
On Jan 13, the Premier said he wanted to limit non-EU citizens without Spanish residence from buying houses and would charge a 100 per cent tax on purchases.
The moves to limit and potentially prohibit foreign acquisitions is part of an attempt to fight a growing housing crisis.
In his earlier comments, Mr Sanchez announced a 12-point plan that included building more public housing, offering financial guarantees for young tenants and increasing taxes on short-term holiday rentals.
Spain’s shortage of affordable housing has become a central discussion point, with all major parties rolling out proposals to boost construction and tamp down soaring prices, including in the capital Madrid.
Mr Sanchez said Spain was seeing a shortfall of about 200,000 new houses every year, based on current demand.
British citizens, the biggest group of buyers from outside the EU, would be the most affected by any change. They largely acquire holiday homes or retirement properties on Spain’s coast.
Madrid has also seen a surge of wealthy Latin American buyers in recent years purchasing high-end property in the capital.
Either proposal by Mr Sanchez – taxing purchases at 100 per cent of their value or an outright ban – would require approval from Parliament, and that is far from certain.
Mr Sanchez leads a minority coalition government and has struggled to pass laws in recent months. BLOOMBERG
