About 50 families protested outside the Catalan Parliament in Barcelona on Thursday to ask MPs to let their protected homes move to the open market when the restriction period written into their deeds ends.

The families, organised in a platform of owners of protected housing, say they bought homes sold below market rate under public subsidy schemes, known in Catalan as habitatge de protecció oficial. They argue that their purchase deeds set a disqualification date, meaning the date on which the home should leave the protected regime, and that later rule changes should not alter those contracts.

For affected owners, the dispute matters because it determines whether they can sell or transfer their flats at market conditions once the original term expires. For other residents, it sits inside a wider fight over whether Catalonia should preserve as much protected housing stock as possible amid high housing costs.

"The rules of the game have been changed on us in the middle of the match," the families' platform said, according to the protest message presented at Parliament.

At the time of publication, the Generalitat, the Catalan government, had not publicly responded to the families' specific demand, and no court ruling cited in the available source material resolves this exact question about deed expiry dates for these homes.

What the owners are asking Parliament to do

The families want Parliament to recognise the dates written into their individual deeds and allow those homes to be sold on the free market once the original protection term ends.

  • The protest took place on Thursday outside the Catalan Parliament in Barcelona.
  • The group says around 50 families are directly involved in this petition.
  • The core complaint is that homes with a fixed expiry date in the title deeds are being kept under protection after that date.

Protected housing in Catalonia has become more politically sensitive as administrations try to stop subsidised homes leaving the affordable stock. Social housing groups defended that approach in a public manifesto reported by betevé, arguing that protected homes should remain protected in order to preserve affordable supply and curb speculation.

Why the dispute comes during a wider housing policy shift

The protest comes as the Generalitat and Catalunya en Comú, known as the Comuns, push a broader housing agenda that channels more revenue into social housing and anti-speculation measures. In June, the two sides announced a fiscal reform agreement to raise more money for housing policies and strengthen public intervention in the market, according to govern.cat.

That same policy package included a plan to redefine a large housing owner in Catalonia as someone with five or more homes, according to reporting by Crónica Global. The threshold matters because Catalan housing rules often impose extra obligations on owners classed as large landlords.

Official data points in the same direction. The Generalitat has said Catalonia will add 13,000 Sareb homes to its public housing stock, according to reporting by ARA, and Barcelona City Council has also sought partners to expand its protected housing portfolio. Those moves show why the government is under pressure to keep subsidised homes inside the protected system rather than allow them to move fully into the market.

  • The Generalitat and Comuns agreed a tax reform aimed at funding more social housing policy.
  • Catalonia is moving to classify owners with five or more homes as large landlords.
  • The government is also trying to expand public and protected housing stock, including 13,000 Sareb homes.

Court rulings and enforcement have reshaped the housing debate

The wider legal backdrop is unsettled. Spain's Constitutional Court has struck down parts of Catalan housing rules in recent years, including provisions published in the Official State Gazette in March 2022 and another ruling published in the Official State Gazette in November 2024.

Separately, the Catalan government is set to lose €13 million in fines imposed on large landowners for not offering social housing, according to ARA. That loss has added to pressure on the administration to find other ways to protect affordable housing supply.

For owners who think their flats should already have left the protected regime, the immediate next step is to check the protection status and the expiry terms recorded in their deeds and housing files through the Generalitat's housing services. The petition from the families has now been lodged with Parliament.

Primary sources: govern.cat, TRIBUNAL CONSTITUCIONAL, TRIBUNAL CONSTITUCIONAL. Reported by ARA, beteve.cat, Àlex Cárcel, catalannews.com, By Agencias, cuatrecasas.com, osborneclarke.com, ooptimo, Addmira Multimedia, habitaretail.com, Maluquer Abogados, Gerard Pruna, Albert Rigol, El Periódico Barcelona.