The SOCIMI Primero H has acquired its first residential building in Barcelona for use as affordable rental housing. The property, located in Horta-Guinardó, comprises 27 flats and has a gross floor area of 1,072 sqm.
Co-founded by ASOCIMI and HOGAR SÍ, the SOCIMI – which until now had properties in Madrid and Palma de Mallorca – dedicates its portfolio to people in vulnerable housing situations, particularly those experiencing homelessness.
Following the purchase, it now owns 56 homes and manages a further 136, spread across Madrid, Barcelona and Palma. The properties are let under long-term contracts with non-profit organisations at below-market rents, which, in the case of the building acquired in Barcelona, will average less than €500, according to HOGAR SÍ.
José Manuel Caballol, director of HOGAR SÍ, links the acquisition to the need to scale up social impact investment projects in affordable housing, particularly in tight markets such as Barcelona, and argued that the recognition of social housing providers in the State Plan should be accompanied by public funding instruments.
In February, Primero H signed an agreement with COFIDES and its Social Impact Fund, which operates under the Ministry of Inclusion, for a loan of €1.5 million to be used for affordable social housing, with which it plans to acquire up to ten additional homes.
