One of Isabel Díaz Ayuso’s notable housing measures is set to help the most, and if the most optimistic forecast holds, only 1,000 people from Madrid will benefit, representing 0.07% of all adults under 35 living in the Community of Madrid. This is the My First Home plan, folded into the ambitious birth strategy and approved at the end of July.
The Madrid government aims to help young adults with economic solvency but limited savings enter the property market through this program.
How does it work? Banks typically lend no more than 80% of a property’s price, so the community provides a guarantee for the remaining 15% to cover up to 95% of the loan. The program draws inspiration from a diagram called Purchasing Assistance from the UK, which started in 2013 and has influenced price levels and developer margins. Main Botín has long been a leading advocate of this approach in Spain and in the Region of Murcia, with support also seen from the PP.
The program budget stands at 18 million euros, double the original amount after a change supported by Vox.
The financed flats cannot cost more than 390,000 euros. The average price for a 90 square meter apartment in the area is around 261,990 euros, according to a recent calculation by El Periódico de España, a newspaper within the Prensa Ibérica group.
If the community must guarantee an average of 39,298 euros per flat, 18 million euros would fund 458 homes. Even if the guaranteed homes cost an average of 195,000 euros (half of the determined limit), the total would cover about 615 flats.
Prospects from the Housing Council are more optimistic. The newspaper consulted 800 beneficiaries, with a best guess near 1,000. To reach this final figure, the average price of guaranteed flats cannot exceed 120,000 euros. Only 8% of at least one-bedroom apartments advertised in the region fall below this price.
In Madrid, 1.39 million people aged 18–35 lived there according to the 2021 register. Assistance can be requested in the last quarter of the year, according to information made public by the Community.
Scholarship for the Rich
The Community Ministry of Environment, Housing and Agriculture had a 526 million euro budget in 2022. Other housing-related items include subsidies from the Social Housing Agency (formerly IVIMA) for the IBI of apartments and the development of the Ministry of Transport’s State Plan for Housing and Rental Subsidies, with 17.8 million.
Compared to other Ayuso priorities, 18 million is not large. The same year, private education scholarships reached about 127 million euros, according to data from El País, with access criteria expanding to the middle and upper classes. Families earning more than 100,000 euros annually could access these scholarships.
A major pillar of Ayuso’s housing policy is the VIVE Plan for residential construction, aiming for 15,000 rental homes in this legislative period. It will not be realized this term; before the end of 2023, none of the flats will remain. The plan relies on transferring public lands to developers who will operate the residences for fifty years.
“High Rents Only”
The concept, echoing the UK scheme, has drawn opposition and questions whether public funds truly secure mortgages. Critics say public resources are directed toward financial interests rather than affordable housing. Alejandra Jacinto, spokesperson for United We Can’s Housing, argues that the state should not shoulder risks for private developers, noting strict access requirements and suggesting the policy may be more a service than a real housing policy. She adds that historically the community has pursued real estate gains rather than housing access.
Jorge Moruno, a Más Madrid Housing spokesperson, describes the measure as echoing past subsidies that ultimately benefit high-income groups. The solvency criteria for future buyers are still being defined, with officials indicating that a comprehensive assessment of a buyer’s solvency, including career longevity and work relationships, will be conducted.
According to the Youth Council’s Observatory for Emancipation, Madrid, despite its high average salary, remains among the least accessible places for young people to become independent. Emancipation rates have fallen, and some view the policy as favoring a minority rather than addressing broad needs.
Both sides argue that the funds should be directed toward buying and building public housing, or adjusting rents, rather than the Ayuso approach. The president has acknowledged the housing access issue in Madrid, mentioning in an interview that he is tired of paying rent and eager to own a home, while noting housing costs in Madrid remain high.