Mark Stücklin
ERC’s latest legislative proposal aims to introduce a progressive tax on anyone who owns three or more residential properties in Spain.
Esquerra Republicana (ERC), the hard-left Catalan separatist party, has tabled a bill in the Spanish Congress proposing a new “Tax on the Accumulation of Residential Properties.” The headline measure is a new tax that kicks in from the third property owned, and increases progressively: 4% on the third, 8% on the fourth, 12% on the fifth, and an additional 5% for every property beyond that. In theory, it’s meant to penalise “speculative accumulation” of housing stock, and encourage long-term residential use and affordability.
But what does this actually mean in practice?
At this stage, the details of how the tax would be applied—valuation method, timing, deductibility, exemptions—are all unclear. News reports don’t say whether the tax is annual or one-off, or whether it applies to the full market value of each property or just a portion. There’s no mention of regional variations, how ownership through companies would be treated, or how this tax would sit alongside existing levies like IBI or wealth tax. All of which makes it hard to judge how impactful this proposal would actually be.
But one thing is clear: ERC is pushing to redefine what counts as a “major landlord” and widen the net of punitive taxation.
Noose tightening: from 10 homes to just 3
Until recently, the definition of a major landlord—gran tenedor—was anyone who owned 10 or more residential properties, or just a share of those properties. That changed in Catalonia, where the threshold has already been lowered to just five in so-called “strained” housing markets, subjecting landlords to more restrictions, obligations, and penalties. Now ERC want to take it further still and start penalising owners from the third property onwards.
It doesn’t take a leap of imagination to see where this is heading. If three is now deemed excessive, how long before owning two homes makes you a target? Or even just one? ERC’s ideological hostility to private property runs deep, and this proposal fits into a broader pattern of efforts to disincentivise investment in residential property, demonise landlords, and push for ever more state control of housing.
Also in their sights are SOCIMIs (Spain’s REIT-equivalent), who currently enjoy favourable tax treatment. ERC wants to strip those benefits, arguing that these vehicles contribute to the financialisation of housing. They also want to raise VAT on tourist rentals to 21%, and hike the minimum IBI rate on non-primary residences held by so-called major landlords. In short, wherever they see private capital in housing, they see a problem—and a new tax opportunity.
Ideology over pragmatism
ERC’s proposal might be wrapped in the language of housing justice, but the underlying intent is clear. This isn’t just about cracking down on “speculators”—it’s about reshaping the housing market to fit a deeply ideological model that’s suspicious of private ownership, hostile to investment, and blind to unintended consequences.
If this proposal gains traction, it won’t just affect institutional landlords or property funds. It will send a warning to anyone who’s invested in housing in Spain—especially in Catalonia—that the political climate is turning against them. And if history is any guide, today’s “three or more” could easily become tomorrow’s “just one.”
