Colau proposes 10% annual tax on multi-owned homes to deter property accumulation in Spain

The proposal

Ada Colau, the Frente Amplio candidate for the presidency of the Spanish government in the 29N election, set out the plan in a Cadena Ser interview on 28 October 2026. The levy would be 10% of the value of each property, charged every year. Companies would pay it from their first home, while individuals would pay from their fourth home onward, and only when the combined value of their properties exceeds 800,000 euros. Owners could avoid the tax by renting their homes at affordable and stable rents.

Who would be affected

Frente Amplio estimates that the measure would reach every investment fund operating in Spain, along with 737 private companies that rent out 50 or more homes. It would also apply to 262,000 multi-owners with four or more homes, a group the party puts at 1.3% of Spanish homeowners, most of whom belong to the richest 10% of the population. Housing cooperatives, public administrations and non-profit organisations would be excluded, as would ownership and use the party considers justified. The party also projects that 213,840 homes not currently rented or used as a main residence would return to the market, while another 272,160 rented homes would have to lower their rents.

Homes returning to the market213,840

Rented homes forced to lower rents272,160

Homes returning to the market

213840 homes

Rented homes forced to lower rents

272160 homes

Data from the article text

A deterrent, not a revenue measure

Colau presented the tax as a deterrent rather than a way to raise money, arguing that its purpose is to push owners into cutting rents so they can avoid it. She said the levy is high enough that holding homes for speculation stops paying off.

“We are talking about a very high tax that makes it not worth speculating.”

Colau said affordable rents in Madrid and Barcelona would need to sit a little more than 30% below current prices. She also argued that owning four properties can be ordinary, citing a main home, a house in a village and a share of an inheritance held with a sibling.

Campaign context

Colau linked the proposal to the case of an elderly woman who died in Madrid after being evicted, which she described as the origin of the current election call. She contrasted the Frente Amplio housing proposals with those of the PSOE, saying her party's measures show more courage. The party also plans to expand public housing and invest up to 1% of GDP, partly financed by the tax. The announcement comes after several days of violent altercations in Barcelona and Bilbao, and the left is trying to refocus the pre-campaign on housing, an issue where Frente Amplio and Podemos feel comfortable and can set themselves apart from the PSOE with specific proposals.