Fedea estimates that the compensation could amount to almost 14 months of rent for an average landlord, warning that the proposed rules could reduce the supply of rental housing.
Landlords in Spain who want to recover a rented property at the end of a tenancy could face compensation payments of around €15,500 to their tenants if the rental reform included in the so-called “Maricarmen decrees” comes into force. The estimate comes from a report by the Foundation for Applied Economics Studies (Fedea), which examines the economic impact of Royal Decree-Laws 28/2026 and 29/2026, approved by the government in early October.
The most significant change is contained in Royal Decree-Law 28/2026. The legislation would replace the current system of lease extensions with successive mandatory five-year renewals for individual landlords and seven-year renewals for corporate landlords. To refuse a renewal, the landlord would have to give six months’ notice and pay compensation equivalent to the greater of 12 months’ rent or one month’s rent for every year the tenant has lived in the property.
Fedea illustrates the potential cost with a property valued at €300,000 and rented out for €1,125 a month, where the upper value under the state reference system is 15% higher than the current rent. In this scenario, compensation would reach €15,525, equivalent to 5.2% of the property’s value and 13.8 months of the rent actually received by the landlord.
The amount would increase with the length of the tenancy. After five, seven, 10 or 12 years of residence, compensation would remain at €15,525 because of the minimum 12-month payment. After 15 years, it would rise to €19,406, reaching €25,875 after 20 years.
Exceptions and potential consequences for the rental market
However, compensation would not be mandatory in every case. Exceptions would include situations in which the landlord needs the property for themselves or certain family members, the tenant has access to another suitable home in the same municipality, or both parties agree to sign a new lease.
No compensation would be payable either if the tenant rejects a renewal offer of at least five years — or seven years for corporate landlords — at a rent adjusted to the limits established by law.
Fedea therefore stresses that €15,500 represents the potential cost of recovering a property in its example, not an automatic payment required whenever a tenancy ends.
The report is particularly critical of the possible effects of the proposed rules on the rental market. Its authors argue that the new obligations would initially benefit existing tenants but could also prompt landlords to set higher starting rents for new leases, sell their properties or withdraw homes from the rental market.
The study also highlights that 76.1% of private landlords own just one rental property, meaning that a substantial share of the financial burden could fall on small-scale property owners.
Additional measures would extend tenant protections
The other measure examined, Royal Decree-Law 29/2026, would introduce an additional extension of up to two years, cap certain rent increases at 2% until the end of 2027, and tighten the rules governing seasonal rentals and room-by-room lets.
Fedea concludes that the package would strengthen protections for existing tenants but warns that this could come at the expense of people still looking for a home. The report also criticises the government for doing little to address what it considers the rental market’s main structural problem: insufficient housing construction and a shortage of developed land in areas with the highest demand.
The report nevertheless notes that Royal Decree-Law 28/2026 still requires ratification by the Permanent Deputation of Spain’s Congress of Deputies. According to Fedea, voting intentions announced so far point towards its repeal, meaning that the proposed compensation requirement may ultimately never come into force.
