The new system, commissioned by the Generalitat and developed by the International Centre for Numerical Methods in Engineering (CIMNE) in Lleida, uses data such as water and electricity consumption, municipal census records, and on-site information from town halls to determine if a property is vacant.
According to Jordi Mas, Director General of Housing for the Government, speaking in an interview with 3Cat, this technology will speed up the identification of empty properties, replacing the physical visits previously required. The new regulatory framework allows municipalities to use available data to ascertain the status of homes more rapidly.
The primary objective of the Government is to create a map of the prevalence of empty homes starting next year. This information will be crucial for the Generalitat and municipalities to design strategies for mobilizing this housing stock.
Mas emphasized that the new data will enable a focus on "incentivization" strategies to bring homes back into use, rather than resorting to punitive measures. The Government favors contacting property owners to encourage properties to become available for new tenants, believing this approach will yield better results than penalties or expropriation.
