The liberalization of the land market in Spain: The 1998 reform of urban planning legislation

Against a general climate of liberalization, the Spanish Government has made a concerted effort to bring about a reduction in house prices. A legislative reform in April 1998 has sought to liberalize land and planning, through (a) refining the category of land previously excluded from development to enable residential development to take place, (b) allowing for greater flexibility of land uses and building controls, and (c) reducing administrative controls. This paper discusses the extent to which such reforms are likely to meet their anticipated objectives, resulting in beneficial effects in the land and housing markets, as well as the territorial impact of such reforms from a sustainability perspective.