With the aim of disseminating the key points of Law 12/2023 on the Right to Housing, Barcelona City Council convened the Social Housing Council of Barcelona for a meeting where participants could clarify questions about the new regulations.
The legal intricacies of Law 12/2023
Lawyers Pablo Feu and Elga Molina took part to explain the fundamental aspects of the Law on the Right to Housing.
Feu focused on explaining the new legal developments and the challenges of interpretation, especially in Catalonia, where there was already existing housing legislation that had to be adapted to the new national law.
According to the expert, Law 12/2023 has a significant impact on legal actions and urban leases. He highlighted the challenges of determining whether an owner is a multiple property owner and whether a tenant is in a vulnerable situation. He also addressed changes to extraordinary renewals and conciliation and mediation procedures. The law is serving its purpose well”, he concluded.
Molina’s intervention focused on the regulation of rental prices, a key objective of the new law, as “the market is not capable of self-regulation”. To provide context, the lawyer reviewed housing systems in other European countries such as Switzerland, France, Denmark and Germany (which she noted mirrored the Spanish system).
Among other topics, she discussed the definition of an owner of several properties (excluding social promoters from this category), the index system for rental prices, its application in Catalonia, the adjustment of rental prices and other aspects not covered in the standard (such as an inspection and enforcement regime).
During the open question period, participants were interested in the regulation of officially protected housing, the sanctioning powers of the Generalitat and the City Council, why the law mentions criteria for renovation, and the mediation process and the need for regulation.