Spain's Maricarmen housing decrees: what Málaga landlords need to know

Spain's Maricarmen housing decrees fell in Congress two days after taking effect. What they held, what still applies and what Málaga landlords should do.

In nine days Spain's government approved, published and lost in Congress the most ambitious housing package of this parliament. The two royal decree-laws the press nicknamed the "Maricarmen decree" took effect on 1 and 2 October 2026, and the Congress of Deputies repealed them on Friday 2 October. If you own a rental property in Málaga, or are deciding how to let one, here is what the decrees contained, what still applies and what to do now. No alarmism.

Last reviewed: 2 October 2026, after the vote in Congress. We will update this page when the repeal is published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) and if the government brings the measures back by another route.

In short: Royal Decree-laws 26/2026 and 27/2026 were repealed by Congress two days after taking effect. The framework today is the one that applied on 29 September: the Urban Leases Act (LAU) as reformed in 2019, the 2023 Housing Act and, in Andalusia, no declared "stressed areas". The measures may return as a bill or a new decree, so the direction of travel matters even though the law fell.

What happened, date by date

23 September 2026: Maricarmen Abascal, 87, is evicted from her home in Madrid's Retiro district. The case dominates the news and ends up naming the package.
29 September: the Council of Ministers approves two royal decree-laws on housing.
30 September: the BOE publishes Royal Decree-law 26/2026 on the social function of housing and affordable supply. In force on 1 October.
1 October: the BOE publishes Royal Decree-law 27/2026 on the stability of main-residence tenancies. In force on 2 October.
2 October: extraordinary plenary session of Congress. PP, Vox, Junts and UPN vote against ratification and both decrees are repealed. Parliamentary reports put the first vote at 178 against and 172 in favour.

A royal decree-law must be ratified by Congress within 30 days of publication or it is repealed (article 86.2 of the Constitution). It is the second time this year: Royal Decree-law 8/2026 of 20 March, which extended tenancies and capped rent updates at 2%, fell in Congress on 28 April.

What Royal Decree-law 26/2026 contained for landlords

It was the big decree, covering contracts, tax, evictions, seasonal lets, room rentals and holiday lets. What touched a landlord letting a main residence directly:

Two-year extraordinary extension. Tenants whose contracts expired before 31 December 2028 could request up to two more years, one year at a time, provided they had paid on time for the previous eight months. Landlords had to accept on the same terms unless both parties agreed new ones or the landlord proved a need for the home for themselves or their family. Published estimates put the number of eligible contracts in Andalusia at about 263,000, half of them in Málaga and Seville.
Cap on rent updates. Annual updates until 31 December 2027 were limited to 2%.
Costs you could no longer pass on. In new contracts, IBI (property tax) and other taxes, agency fees and rent-default insurance could not be charged to the tenant.
Seasonal lets with a documented cause. A seasonal contract was only valid if the tenant was temporarily displaced for a real reason stated in the contract, and the landlord carried the burden of proof. More than 31 days and, as a rule, no more than 12 months. Chained seasonal contracts, or an unproven cause, turned the lease into a main-residence tenancy with its five or seven years.
Room rentals moved under the Urban Leases Act, with limits.
Eviction shield until 2030 for vulnerable households with no housing alternative. The new element for landlords was who paid: the regional government had two months to offer alternative housing or cover the unpaid rent, later compensated by the State.
Tenant tax deduction of up to 10% of rent paid, on a base of up to 11,630 euros, for taxable income below 33,007.20 euros.
Funds and large holders. Not a general ban on funds buying homes: until 31 December 2028, entities whose business includes buying property could not purchase homes below 70% of appraised value, with exceptions for affordable and social housing.
Empty homes. Surcharges and, under the text, temporary expropriation of the use of homes empty for more than 12 months, only in stressed areas.
Holiday lets. 10% VAT from 1 December 2026 on stays of up to 30 nights, a 31-day cap on tourist stays and IBI surcharges in stressed areas. We cover that separately in what the fallen decree means for your Málaga holiday let.

What Royal Decree-law 27/2026 contained: automatic renewal

The second decree was shorter and deeper. It amended article 10 of the Urban Leases Act so that, once the minimum term of five years (seven if the landlord is a company) had run, a main-residence tenancy renewed automatically for equal periods unless either party said otherwise.

To refuse renewal, the landlord had to give six months' notice and pay the tenant at least twelve months' rent, except for justified causes such as needing the home for themselves or family, or offering alternative housing. According to analyses published by law firms and the specialist press, it also reached existing contracts through a transitional regime: tenancies in tacit renewal joined the new system from the first expiry after 2 February 2027, with four months' notice.

This decree had even fewer supporters than the first. It was widely expected to fall before the vote.

What it would have meant in Málaga: the stressed-area question

Much of decree 26/2026 only switched on in "stressed residential market areas", the mechanism created by the 2023 Housing Act. Declaring them is a regional power. The Andalusian government has declared none and says no municipality has asked for one.

For a Málaga owner, that meant two different lists:

Would have applied from 1 and 2 October: the extraordinary extension, the 2% cap, automatic renewal with compensation, the mandatory cause for seasonal lets, the limits on room rentals, the non-transferable costs and 10% VAT on holiday lets.
Would not have touched Málaga while there is no stressed area: IBI surcharges on tourist and empty homes, temporary expropriation of empty homes and the lower large-holder threshold.

That split is still useful, because any future law built the same way will have the same map.

What applies on 3 October

With the package repealed, the framework is the usual one:

Main-residence tenancies. The Urban Leases Act as reformed by Royal Decree-law 7/2019: minimum five years (seven with a corporate landlord), tacit extension of up to three years, four months' notice from the landlord and two from the tenant to end it. No compensation for not renewing.
The 2023 Housing Act remains in force, with its stressed areas (none in Andalusia), its definition of large holder (more than ten homes) and the reference index for rent updates in contracts signed under it.
Seasonal lets. Article 3 of the LAU does not itself demand a written cause, but courts already check whether the temporary need is real. In Andalusia, stays of more than two months also fall outside tourist-rental rules (article 1.2.b of Decree 28/2016).
Holiday lets. VAT-exempt without hotel-type services, no national 31-day cap and Málaga's moratorium untouched. The English summary is in holiday rental regulations in Málaga.

On contracts signed on 1 or 2 October while the decrees were in force: repeal is not retroactive and, as a general rule, a lease is governed by the law in force when it was signed. The precedent of Royal Decree-law 8/2026 left doubts about extensions requested during its short life, and with two days of validity there will be very few cases. If yours is one, speak to a lawyer before doing anything.

What to do now if you let a property in Málaga from abroad

Do not act on a headline. The decree has fallen, but the government said its ambition "goes beyond this royal decree" and the housing minister offered to process the measures as an urgent bill. All, some or none of it may return. Plan with what is in force and keep an eye on the direction of travel.
Check how your contract is built. If it is a seasonal let, make sure the reason for the temporary stay is written down and real: remote work, relocation, a course, medical treatment. If it is a main-residence tenancy, know your expiry and notice dates. Nothing the decree demanded for seasonal lets is bad practice today: a contract with a documented cause survives any future reform and any present court.
Choose your model with numbers, not fear. Long-term let, mid-term let, holiday let if you hold a licence, or guaranteed rent. Each has its own legal frame and its own yield. Use the rental calculator to compare scenarios for your property.

Where the opportunity is

We will not pretend a repeal is good news for everyone. But four things work in favour of an owner who holds a property in Málaga and runs it properly.

Málaga still has no stressed area. Until that changes there are no price caps on new contracts and no IBI surcharges, and the harshest parts of any national package do not switch on here. That is an advantage over Catalonia, the Balearics, Madrid, the Basque Country or Navarre, and it should not be assumed permanent.

Mid-term lets are the segment every draft leaves standing. Contracts of more than 31 days with a real cause, which in Andalusia also sit outside tourist rules from two months. From October to May, Málaga has steady demand from digital nomads, corporate relocations, healthcare staff and postgraduates. If your property has no licence, this is the legal route with no registration. If it has one, it is the winter cushion.

A tourist licence is worth more every month. Since 25 July 2026 Málaga admits no new tourist accommodation on residential land, with a suspension of up to three years. Every owner with a registered, compliant VUT operates in a market that no longer grows.

If you do not want to live by the BOE, there is a model for that. With guaranteed rent you receive a fixed amount every month, your contract is with AltaHomes rather than an individual tenant, and we take on operations and compliance. Written offer within 48 hours, no commission.

Frequently asked questions

What is Spain's "Maricarmen decree"?

It is the popular name for two housing royal decree-laws approved by Spain's Council of Ministers on 29 September 2026: Royal Decree-law 26/2026 (social function of housing and affordable supply) and Royal Decree-law 27/2026 (stability of main-residence tenancies). They are named after Maricarmen Abascal, an 87-year-old woman evicted in Madrid on 23 September 2026.

Is the Maricarmen decree in force?

No. Royal Decree-law 26/2026 took effect on 1 October 2026 and 27/2026 on 2 October, but Congress refused to ratify them on 2 October with PP, Vox, Junts and UPN voting against. Unratified decree-laws are repealed under article 86.2 of the Spanish Constitution, and their effects cease once the repeal is published in the BOE.

Did the decree apply to Málaga and Andalusia?

Partly. The extraordinary extension, the 2% cap on updates, automatic renewal with compensation, the mandatory cause for seasonal lets and 10% VAT on holiday lets applied nationwide. IBI surcharges, temporary expropriation of empty homes and the lower large-holder threshold only operated in stressed areas, and Andalusia has declared none.

Does the repeal change my modelo 210 or other taxes as a non-resident?

No. The tenant deduction and the landlord incentives were part of the repealed decree, and the 10% VAT on holiday lets never reached its 1 December 2026 start date. Non-resident income tax (modelo 210, 19% on net income for EU and EEA residents, 24% on gross income for everyone else) is unchanged.

Can the Maricarmen decree come back?

Yes. The government did not withdraw the decrees before the vote and the housing minister offered to process the measures as an urgent bill open to amendments. A separate bill on seasonal lets is also before Congress. Nothing requires the same content to return, but the political direction has been the same since March 2026.

Official sources and references

This page informs, it does not advise. Vote counts, contract estimates and application details come from the press and specialist law firms, checked on the day of writing; the legal text is the one in the BOE. For your own case, speak to your lawyer or tax adviser.

If your property is in Málaga and this week has left you unsure which model suits you, tell us. Our property management page explains how we work, the published commission and the free 48-hour study, with holiday-let, mid-term and guaranteed-rent scenarios for your home.

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