Just because the size of rural Catalonia is not of the caliber of urban Catalonia does not mean that small towns do not have needs in terms of mobility, technology or housing. To improve their situation, this summer the Law on the Statute of Rural Municipalities was approved (the 608 with less than 2,000 inhabitants, representing 4% of the Catalan population) and the Government has convened this Saturday a Meeting of Rural Municipalities, which was attended by around 300 mayors, in Món Sant Benet (Bages). In terms of accommodation, the president Salvador Illa has announced several new developments related to housing, which seek to halt the depopulation of what Catalans call the territory. The idea is to promote the rehabilitation of empty houses in these municipalities to convert them into regular residences for rent at affordable prices: which can be uninhabited private homes, the former home of a teacher or doctor, or abandoned municipal buildings.
“Avoiding depopulation and guaranteeing life in rural centers is synonymous with guaranteeing the right to housing,” Illa assured during his speech at the conference. The head of government has outlined a series of initiatives, such as the allocation of 20 million euros per year to purchase 100 affordable homes in those areas. However, the bulk will be in the rehabilitation, according to a plan that will be approved this Tuesday by the Board of Directors. “We want to give power to the mayors, because they have the trust of the citizens. They are the ones who must have the last word,” he added.
To materialize the plan, the Generalitat Construction Agency, which depends on the Ministry of Territory, will launch a Rural Housing Exchange in collaboration with the Regional Councils with the idea of mobilizing them with rehabilitation aid. The commitment is to allocate five million euros every year until 2029 in works that will be financed jointly by the Generalitat and the owners (be they private individuals or the Municipalities themselves). These funds would make it possible to renovate about a hundred homes a year, a size that may seem small from a city, but which can have an impact in very small municipalities. Of the 608 municipalities with fewer than 2,000 inhabitants, 381 have fewer than 500 neighbors.
«We will also create Incasòl Rural», added the presidentin reference to a specific team (six professionals including architecture, law and engineering) present within the current Institute and which will be dedicated exclusively to providing technical assistance to the Municipalities and Regions. Illa assured that it was a long-standing claim to the territory and that it will help. for example, with the processing of permits, actions in historic centers or collaborating on rehabilitation.
The day was divided into four working tables. The advisors to the Presidency, Albert Dalmau, presented the fiscal measures, public funds, regulations or the development of connectivity to the mayors; of Economics, Alicia Romero; of Territory, Housing and Ecological Transition, Sílvia Paneque, and Agriculture, Òscar Ordeig. Illa recalled that the law is a legacy of the ERC government and that it was abandoned due to the electoral advance.
The new package of tax measures for rural municipalities, designed especially for those under 35 or families with children, provides for the reduction of the tax rate on the Transfer Tax (to 4% and 3% in the case of special attention municipalities), the 75% bonus on notarial deeds and, starting from 2026: deductions of up to 20% on the IRPEF for the transfer of residence, purchase, rehabilitation and rental of the main residence. “Living in a city should be an opportunity, not an obstacle,” said the president.
In parallel, the future Land Law (which should have its first draft at the beginning of 2026) plans to adapt, streamline and facilitate the urban planning and public procurement procedures of rural municipalities, which despite their uniqueness and few resources often have to deal with the same bureaucracy as large cities. “We want every law, every project to incorporate a rural perspective and look at the country from the smallest municipalities,” he added.
Other innovations include the increase of over 7.5 million in the Local Cooperation Fund, the creation of the regulatory study group to adapt and simplify the legislation, which the Government sees as “a fundamental piece of the implementation of the Law”. Finally, the Catalan Executive “is advancing in the creation of infrastructure and reaffirms its commitment to reach 100% of connected municipalities within this deadline”. The publicly owned fiber optic network today reaches 7,500 kilometers and 684 municipalities.
