This Friday, Valencia City Council will modify the rules for accessing public housing. Faced with a social reality in which emancipation is increasingly delayed, the municipal government, led by María José Catalá, has presented an update to the + Housing Plan that substantially alters the profile of beneficiaries: priority access to affordable rent will be extended to 45 years of age and 7 years of residence in the city will be required.
These measures, which will be approved by the Local Government Board next Friday, seek to adapt the regulations to the “new social reality” and protect the “middle and working classes” who, despite having jobs, are unable to access the free market, according to a statement issued by the council.
Priority for those who are committed to the city
One of the most significant changes is the tightening of the residency requirement to qualify for these homes on a priority basis. The council will introduce the concept of roots, requiring applicants to have been registered in Valencia for at least seven years.
The age limit is raised from 35 to 45
Until now, the age range for accessing aid or housing for young people was capped at 35. However, the difficulty of becoming independent has led the council to raise this ceiling to 45.
According to the mayor, maintaining the previous limit excluded a large sector of the population that also suffers from abusive market prices. By widening the range, these citizens are recognized as subjects of “preferential protection,” allowing them to develop their life projects without being expelled from the city for economic reasons.
Municipal Rental Agency with rents below market price
Photo: Photo by Joaquin Carfagna:
https://www.pexels.com/es-es/foto/ciudad-casas-arboles-parque-17274301/
The second major pillar of the plan is the launch of the Municipal Rental Agency, designed to mobilize empty homes that owners do not put on the market.
The deal offered by the City Council is as follows: the administration will guarantee payment to the owner, eliminating the risk of non-payment. In exchange, the owner must offer the property at a price 20% below market value. “The owner will have the security of being paid at the end of the month and the tenant will be able to access a cheaper home,” explained María José Catalá, mayor of Valencia.
More land and more density: conversion of educational plots
To increase supply, the City Council will activate part of the 500,000 m² of educational land that has been inactive for decades and is no longer needed for building schools. Following agreement with the Regional Ministry, this land will be converted into social housing, mainly for young people, and integrated into the existing urban fabric.
In addition, the General Urban Development Plan (PGOU) will be reformed to allow for greater residential density, increasing from 75 to 140 dwellings per hectare. This includes facilitating the division of large apartments (old ones with service doors) into two smaller dwellings and the conversion of tourist ground floors into residential ones.
General economic requirements
Beyond the new requirements regarding age and length of residence, the basic financial criteria available on the city council’s website for applicants for public rental housing are as follows:
- Income: The household must have a minimum annual income of 0.5 times the IPREM and a maximum of 4.5 times the IPREM (or 5.5 times in cases of disability or large families). That is, €2,700 as the maximum monthly income per unit (IPREM of €600 x 4.5 times).
- Property: You cannot own or have usufruct rights to any property in Spain (except in justified cases of unavailability).
- Legal status: Be of legal age or an emancipated minor and not be legally incapacitated.