The Torrelodones Town Hall, represented by its Councilor for Urban Planning, Antonio Iraizoz, has actively participated in a recent meeting of the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP). The event's main objective was the presentation of a new "Federation's Recommendations Guide for Agile Housing Procedures," a document designed to simplify municipal administrative processes related to property construction.
The meeting, chaired by FEMP president María José García-Pelayo, served as a platform to unveil a detailed roadmap. This guide proposes a series of recommendations and best practices aimed at optimizing and accelerating administrative procedures, a crucial aspect given the so-called "housing emergency" affecting the entire country. FEMP emphasizes the need for collaboration among all stakeholders, both public and private, to find effective solutions.
García-Pelayo explained that the complex housing situation stems from multiple factors that impact each municipality differently, thus ruling out one-size-fits-all solutions. Among the challenges mentioned, she highlighted the increase in tourist-use housing, the presence of vacant properties in urban areas due to owners' fear of illegal occupation, and the inherent slowness of administrative procedures in the construction sector.
The FEMP president also underscored the significance of the measures included in Royal Decree-Law 13/2026, recently published in the Official State Gazette (BOE). These measures, which address long-standing FEMP demands, will allow the use of budgetary surpluses from 2025 and subsequent years to finance sustainable housing investments, including the possibility of multi-year execution. Furthermore, an exceptional regime is established for the use of treasury reserves, and obligations regarding the Economic-Financial Plan are relaxed under certain circumstances.
During her address, García-Pelayo emphasized that administrative simplification is a fundamental pillar for tackling the housing challenge, recalling that in many cases, the time spent processing permits exceeds the actual construction time of the buildings.
