The Basque Government has designated Oñati as a rent-stressed area for three years

Oñati municipality has been designated as a stressed housing market area by the Department of Housing and Urban Agenda of the Basque Government, through the Order of October 23, 2026. The decision is valid for three years, and the price of new rentals in the municipality will be limited by the system of reference indices. The Order was published in BOPV number 212 on November 5, 2026, with official reference 2026/4680.

The procedure was not immediate. Oñati City Council requested the Department to initiate the procedure to designate a stressed zone on March 5, 2026, and the Order of June 5, 2026 set the process in motion with a public information phase. The announcement was published in BOPV number 112 and Official Gazette of Vitoria-Gasteiz number 111 on June 16, 2026, and interested parties were given a period of 20 business days; the council was notified on June 8, with a hearing period of twenty business days. After the deadlines for the hearing and public information expired, no objections were filed, and this was recorded in the file.

Definition of large landlords established

The Order specifies who holds the status of a large landlord throughout the municipality, and this condition is the starting point for applying the rental limit:

• Owning five or more dwellings in the case of urban properties for residential use.
• Or a built-up area of more than 1,500 square meters for residential use.
• Garages and storage rooms are always excluded from the calculation.
• Dwellings belonging to public administrations, their instrumental bodies, or companies in which they hold a majority stake are exempt.

This concept was justified by the Government itself in the reasoned memorandum and is consistent with article 3.k) of Law 12/2023.

Two different limits for new rentals

The Order establishes two regulatory limits for rental contracts. The first, based on article 17.6 of Law 29/1994: the initial rent of a new contract cannot exceed the last rent in force for the same dwelling in the last five years, after applying the annual update clause, and new expenses cannot be attributed to the tenant. As an exception, a maximum increase of 10% is accepted only in these four cases:

• The dwelling has undergone rehabilitation works in the two years prior to signing the contract.
• Rehabilitation or improvement works have proven a 30% saving in non-renewable primary energy.
• Accessibility improvement works have been carried out, duly certified.
• The contract is signed for ten years or more, or the tenant has an explicit right to extend it for that period.

The second is stricter for large landlords: the rent cannot exceed the maximum price according to the system of reference indices. The same limit will apply to dwellings that have had no rental contracts in the last five years, a case specifically justified by the Department in the Order.

Three-year validity and remaining procedures

The duration of the designation is three years, and it may be extended annually following the same procedure, provided that the conditions remain the same and the justification for the measures previously taken is provided. The order shall be notified to the Secretary General for Urban Agenda and Housing of the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, and the ministry will compile the lists of current stressed areas in a quarterly resolution. Furthermore, it is ordered to be notified to the municipality and published in the BOPV or the Official Gazette of Vitoria-Gasteiz, for general knowledge.

The territorial area reference file is AAAA_ORD_3709/26_09. The order exhausts the administrative route; therefore, an appeal for reconsideration may be filed within one month, or a contentious-administrative appeal may be filed before the corresponding Administrative Litigation Chamber of the Court within two months, counting from the day following its publication in the BOPV. The order was signed by Denis Itxaso González, Councilor for Housing and Urban Agenda, in Vitoria-Gasteiz, on October 23, 2026.

What it means for tenants and owners

The decision regarding Oñati is justified according to case b) of article 18.3 of Law 12/2023: the sale or rental prices of housing have increased by more than three percentage points above the cumulative growth of the autonomous community’s KPI over the last five years. The designation does not change all existing rental relationships, but it sets a ceiling on the price of new housing being marketed, and in the case of large owners, this limit is based on indices. This is a measure that can have a significant impact in a small municipality, as it has a market with limited supply, and before the three-year period ends, the Department will include the measures to correct imbalances and their calendar in a specific plan.

Fuente: BOPV, no. 212, November 5, 2026, Otras Disposiciones (official reference: 2026/4680).