The Minister of Housing and Urban Agenda, Isabel Rodríguez, in collaboration with the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE), has led an informative session focused on loans and guarantees from the Official Credit Institute (ICO) aimed at developers interested in building affordable housing. This event, held today, highlights the importance of this financing line as an essential part of the Affordable Housing Construction Program within the Recovery Plan.
Rodríguez emphasized that this financial support is crucial to ensure the economic viability of over 500 construction projects already underway. This initiative not only involves granting loans but also has a state guarantee of 2,000 million euros to ensure the financing of beneficiaries.
Currently, the ministry is evaluating 63 projects totaling 20,000 homes, with a financing cost estimated at 2,100 million euros out of a total of 4,000 million available. These projects include both the construction of new buildings and the rehabilitation of existing infrastructure, always focusing on social renting and energy efficiency.
The ICO loan program is aimed at both public and private developers and aims to increase the number of homes available for social renting or at affordable prices, as well as financing the acquisition of land or buildings. The funded projects must meet strict energy requirements, ensuring that new buildings consume less than 20% of primary energy compared to nearly zero-energy buildings, while existing buildings must decrease non-renewable primary energy use by 30%.
On the other hand, the deadline to complete the projects varies depending on their nature, with deadlines set between 2026 for urbanized new constructions and eight years for undeveloped land, with extensions available. Operations initiated from January 1, 2022, must be formalized by August 31, 2026, accessible through the ICO or collaborating financial entities, each contributing up to 2,000 million euros, adjusting their offer according to demand.
Finally, the Government has launched a guarantee line that covers up to 50% of the loan capital, managed at no cost by the ICO and applied automatically with loan approval. This measure, approved by the Council of Ministers in December 2023, aims to improve and expand access to financially accessible housing throughout the national territory.
Referrer: MiMub in Spanish