In Barcelona it is possible to pay rents from 400 and 500 euros per month for a complete apartment. Most of these offers are part of the Public Housing Park of the city of Barcelona or the Generalitat de Catalunya.
During the last few years, Barcelona has initiated multiple affordable rental projects aimed at those people with lower salaries, young people or the elderly who are looking for a housing alternative. The Generalitat de Catalunya has also done the same, as evidenced by projects such as the one to build 10,000 homes on plots of land in Catalonia over the next few years.
However, these homes will be awarded to those who are part of official registers of housing applicants. In the city of Barcelona, the registry is regulated by the city council through this website. In Catalonia, the Agència de l’Habitatge is in charge.
In the case of the Catalan capital, registration in this registry is valid for two years from the date of the administrative resolution of acceptance of the application for registration, so that it must be renewed annually, and can be accessed by those who meet a series of requirements.
Requirements to become a Housing Applicant in Barcelona
To access an Official Protection Housing (VPO) in Barcelona, the first requirement is to be registered in the city, and not to own a home previously. In the case of the Generalitat de Catalunya, the census registration extends to any Catalan municipality for emancipated adults.
They must prove that they need housing -either because they do not have one or because the current one is not adequate according to regulatory criteria- and must not exceed the maximum income established for each type of subsidized housing.
Both Barcelona and the Generalitat establish income tables for members of the family unit that regulate the concession of each rental or regimes such as surface, which in practice is the semi-ownership of public housing for a period of 75 years.
For example l’Ajuntament de Barcelona establishes up to 4 income ranges according to each rental modality and call. Each offer of rental or housing for sale will regulate these assumptions and the maximum limit that will be applied.
The maximum income table, applicable as of July 1, 2024 (based on the income of the year 2023), varies depending on the number of members that make up the living unit. For each family size, different brackets are established: 1 CSRI, 2.5 CSRI, 5 CSRI and 6.5 CSRI.
By way of example, for a single-member unit, the annual income must not exceed 11,473.53 € in the 1 CSIR bracket, and can reach a maximum of 74,577.97 € if the highest bracket (6.5 CSIR) is chosen. As the number of members increases, so do the maximum limits, reaching a ceiling of €82,864.41 in the 6.5 CSRR bracket in the case of four or more people.
In addition, in those cases in which a member of the cohabitation unit has a recognized disability, it is allowed to apply the value corresponding to the immediately higher bracket, which widens the margin of allowed income.
The website of the Generalitat de Catalunya also establishes more than ten income assumptions to be taken into account, according to the call for applications. They can be consulted here.
It must be taken into account that there are also situations that automatically exclude the possibility of registering in the registry, such as the renunciation of the awarded subsidized housing, without reasonable justified cause, twice. During the five years following the date of the renunciation or revocation, you will not be able to re-enter the registry.
How to formalize the registration in the Housing Applicant Registry
The Barcelona City Council has set up a web page where you can consult all the conditions and carry out the procedure telematically. The application must be accompanied by documents such as the census, marital status or the last income tax returns.
L’Agència de l’Habitatge de Catalunya also has a website where you can formalize the registration, as well as consult the latest calls for public housing.
How much does a subsidized rental cost in Barcelona?
If we take as a reference one of the last major public housing developments inaugurated in 2025, Illa Glòries, a public rental in Barcelona can be between 430 and 820 euros, depending on the size of the property. A price that represents more than a 50% reduction compared to those in force in the private market.
Even so, each call regulates specific prices for each property, so rents may vary slightly from the example. There is also a public housing stock in which private owners can cede their apartments to the Administration.
In the case of VPO housing for purchase, there are modalities such as the right of superficies. This is a new type of access to housing that consists of buying only the use of the building, while the land remains the property of the municipality.
For a period of 75 years, the right of ownership of the property is acquired. During the first 25-30 years, a mortgage is paid with installments comparable to those of a protected rent.
Once the mortgage is fully paid off, no further payments are required. At the end of 75 years, ownership reverts to the municipality.