Barcelona and Esplugues to Coordinate 3,000 Affordable Homes on Their Border

On 28 October 2026, the city councils of Barcelona and Esplugues de Llobregat formalised an institutional collaboration protocol to coordinate urban management in their bordering areas. The agreement, signed by mayors Jaume Collboni and Eduard Sanz, lays the groundwork for creating a joint parity Commission that will jointly plan residential growth and regulate the provision of temporary stays in the metropolitan confluence.

What's Changing

The protocol covers a contact strip between Barcelona's Les Corts district and Esplugues de Llobregat, spanning an area of 1,062 hectares and home to 130,000 inhabitants. This coordination directly impacts five strategic urban sectors: the Montesa Strategic Residential Area (ARE), Finestrelles, the Ecobarri dels Torrents, Porta Diagonal–Campus Clínic, and Colònia Castells.

Within this set of initiatives, the development of 6,000 properties is planned, of which 50% (approximately 3,000 units) will be designated for public ownership and affordable housing (VPO). This represents one of the largest allocations of protected residential land projected in the urban continuum of the Catalan capital.

Alongside permanent housing, the substantial change lies in the regulation of institutional and temporary accommodation. Both councils will coordinate the residential response linked to the establishment of the future Campus de Salut Clínic-UB, which will occupy 9 hectares with 300,000 m² of hospital, university, and research space, with an estimated 65,000 daily movements. To prevent care-related pressure from leading to speculation in seasonal rentals or diversions to tourist uses, specific types of temporary accommodation will be created, exclusively allocated to healthcare, teaching, and research staff.

Who Is Affected

The measure impacts various profiles within the metropolitan area:

• Applicants for affordable housing: the medium-term availability of social housing flats for sale and protected rentals is expanded on the border between both municipalities.
• Healthcare, university, and research staff: will have access to a pool of institutional temporary accommodation specifically regulated to cover academic stays, research contracts, or hospital rotations.
• Property owners and real estate investors: new developments and licences in these five sectors must adhere to land use limitations and the mandatory 50% reservation for affordable housing, with an explicit restriction on seasonal rental models not formally linked to these activities.

What It Means If You Own Property in Catalonia

Both Barcelona and Esplugues de Llobregat are formally declared strained residential market zones under State Law 12/2023. The signing of this protocol reinforces the trend of Catalan administrations to scrutinise seasonal and room rentals when used to circumvent the rent containment index.

Although this is an action confined to the southwestern metropolitan area, it sets the urban planning criterion that the Generalitat de Catalunya and the councils are consolidating: to prioritise institutional land to cover objective public needs over unregulated temporary models. If you own properties intended for temporary rental in strained municipalities, the justification of the contractual reason (documented and accredited employment, medical, or study purposes) is becoming increasingly crucial for operating with full legal guarantees.

What Is Still Unknown

It should be noted that the document signed on 28 October 2026 is a bilateral political and administrative protocol, and therefore does not yet have the force of law, nor has it been published in the Diari Oficial de la Generalitat de Catalunya (DOGC) or the Butlletí Oficial de la Província de Barcelona (BOPB). As of today, the following steps are pending:

• The formal ratification of the establishment of the joint parity Commission in the plenary sessions of both councils.
• The technical processing and definitive approval of the planning instruments derived from the Metropolitan General Plan (PGM) for the affected sectors.
• The specification of budget items, the allocation of plots to public or private developers, and the definitive work execution schedules.

What To Do Now

If you reside in the metropolitan area or are awaiting affordable housing, it is advisable to register or update your data in the Registre de Sol·licitants d'Habitatge amb Protecció Oficial de Catalunya through the Agència de l'Habitatge de Catalunya or the local housing services of Barcelona and Esplugues.

In the case of owners who manage or plan to rent properties for temporary stays in the area, it is essential to review that contracts accurately reflect the reason for temporality, the tenant's permanent address, and the agreed duration, in accordance with current regional and local guidelines.