If I am a large-scale landlord, do I have to offer social rent before suing?

Question

José Manuel Alburquerque · Accepted Answer

In Catalonia, yes, if you are going to bring a possession claim for non-payment against a family at risk of housing exclusion that has no other home. But, following the judgments of the “Tribunal Constitucional”, Spain's Constitutional Court, it is an administrative obligation for which the Generalitat (the Catalan government) can impose penalties, not a requirement for the court to admit the claim. It does not apply to evictions at the end of the tenancy. In the claim, State law requires you to state whether the flat is the tenant's principal residence and whether you are a large-scale landlord (“gran tenedor”). You no longer have to prove that you have first been through conciliation or intermediation by the public authorities, because the Constitutional Court struck down that requirement in 2025. When it must be offered If you are a large-scale landlord under Catalan law, which has its own definition for this obligation. Before bringing a possession claim for non-payment or mortgage enforcement proceedings. If the occupants have no other home and are at risk of housing exclusion according to the income limits set by Catalan law. The offer must be of social rent, with the rent adjusted to the family's income. It is not required for an eviction at the end of the tenancy. The obligation refers only to non-payment and to mortgage enforcement. The courts have also taken that view. If you do not offer it The court cannot refuse to admit the claim or suspend the proceedings on that account, because the Constitutional Court struck down the Catalan rules that made the offer a requirement of the lawsuit. The Barcelona “Audiencia Provincial”, the provincial appeal court, reiterated this in 2026. What you risk is a penalty from the Generalitat, which can also order you to make the offer, even if late. What State law requires The possession claim must state whether the flat is the tenant's principal residence and whether you are a large-scale landlord. If it does not, the claim is not admitted. Here it is the State definition of a large-scale landlord that counts, which since 8 October 2026 has been proved with a certificate from the “Registro de la Propiedad”, the Land Registry. It is no longer necessary to prove that you have first been through a conciliation or intermediation procedure run by the public authorities when the tenant is vulnerable. The Constitutional Court struck down that requirement in 2025. If you are an entity engaged in buying properties or portfolios of non-performing mortgage loans, since 8 October 2026 the eviction of a vulnerable tenant with no other home has been suspended even if judgment has already been given. Those entities receive no compensation. Like any other landlord, you must first try to reach an agreement with the tenant. The offer of social rent can form part of that negotiation.