On March 26, the municipal plenary of Elorrio unanimously approved the request to the Basque Government to declare the municipality a tense housing market area. The agreement passed with the votes in favor of the EH Bildu and Podemos-Ahal Dugu groups, and the abstention of the PNV, marking another step towards achieving this designation.

To initiate the formal procedure for this designation, the city council has already submitted a diagnosis and action plan on the housing situation in the town to the Department of Housing. According to municipal representatives, the diagnosis clearly shows that the housing market in Elorrio is not balanced and does not guarantee access to adequate housing conditions. This demonstrates that the request to be declared a high-tension residential area is not arbitrary, but based on objective and measurable data.

The elaborated action plan includes 26 measures organized into four main axes. These axes are: promoting affordable rental housing; activities related to the housing stock and urban regeneration; a system of benefits and subsidies for rent; and governance and inter-institutional coordination mechanisms. The plan also details specific measures to correct the detected imbalances and a development schedule for the three years the designation will be in effect.

Municipal representatives explained that some measures are already underway, while others can only be implemented once the high-tension residential area designation is obtained. Therefore, this designation will be crucial for applying significant measures such as limiting rental prices, extending contracts for tenants, actions against large property owners, or expanding the public housing supply, among others.

Now, the Basque Government will analyze the submitted documents and subsequently forward them to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda, the competent entity for making the final designation.