Spain proposes ban on evictions as ousted 87-year-old considers offer to return home

Spain's coalition government said it had agreed proposals including banning evictions until 2030 to address the country's housing crisis, as the 87-year-old woman whose ‌forced removal last week triggered protests was considering an offer to return home.

Hundreds of people remained camped in one of Madrid's main squares on Tuesday to protest Maricarmen Abascal's removal from her home on a stretcher last Wednesday. They are demanding legal reforms including a rent freeze and the automatic renewal ‌of leases without abusive rent hikes. Health Minister Monica Garcia said the ruling Socialists reached an agreement with junior partner Sumar on Tuesday for a set ‌of new measures, including rolling over contracts until 2028 and banning so-called vulture funds from the housing market. However, the minority government faces an uphill battle to secure support in a fragmented parliament.

The measures will be divided into two decrees to be voted in parliament on Friday, with the majority in a first decree. The "final sticking point" of automatic ⁠contract rollover ​is in a second decree, Social Affairs ⁠Minister Pablo Bustinduy told a news conference. 'TIME TO INTERVENE'

"It is time to intervene in the speculative housing market and start striking a balance between ordinary citizens and vulture funds," Garcia ⁠wrote on X. Junts, the Catalan pro-independence party that would need to back the decree for it to pass, said on Tuesday it was still far from agreeing on ​all measures and wanted protection for small landlords, who make up the vast majority of property owners in Spain.

"We all agreed that ⁠evictions – where the property is owned by a fund, a vulture fund, run by someone managing millions of euros – obviously need to be stopped," Junts parliamentary spokesperson Miriam Nogueras said on RTVE. "Lumping ⁠together ​in this category those who have invested their savings in a flat, a restaurant or a property – putting them all in the same basket – is a mistake," she added.

The lawyer for pensioner Abascal said on Tuesday that UrbaGestion, the fund that owns her apartment, had offered a preliminary ⁠agreement late on Monday that could allow her return to her home if she agrees to its terms. They would imply paying 30% of ⁠her pension over the next eight ⁠years, equivalent to around €500 a month. This would see her paying a similar level as prior to the eviction.

"She should never have been forced to leave," Beatriz Duro told reporters. "I hope this case serves to provide a collective response ‌to the housing crisis."