Image: Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, Madrid
Madrid city officials have begun work on a new public housing development in Carabanchel, with 40 homes planned for affordable rent through the municipal housing company EMVS Madrid. The project, known as 'Carabanchel 35', was marked by the laying of its first stone on 29 July 2026 and is scheduled to be completed in mid-2028.
According to the city’s press materials, the development is being financed entirely with municipal funds and carries a budget of more than 12.4 million euros, specifically 12,412,483 euros. The scheme forms part of the Ayuntamiento de Madrid’s wider effort to expand the capital’s public housing stock, with the administration presenting it as one of several ongoing developments intended to increase supply in the city.
The building will include apartments with two, three and four bedrooms. The breakdown given by the city is 13 two-bedroom homes, 24 three-bedroom homes and three four-bedroom homes. Each dwelling will be paired with storage space, and the project also includes parking for 60 vehicles.
The city says the homes are intended to serve young people and families who need access to below-market housing, with rents capped so they do not exceed 30% of household income. The press release links that condition to the social purpose of the project, presenting it as a way to widen access to housing in Madrid without placing excessive pressure on residents’ budgets.
Sustainability and accessibility are central to the design. The development has received AENOR’s Sustainable Building certification at project stage, and the planned features include a ventilated facade, solar protection on the windows, cross ventilation in all 40 homes and centralised aerothermal systems for heating, cooling and hot water. The system will distribute climate control through radiant and cooling floors.
Outside the building, the site is planned with native, low-water vegetation, drip irrigation fed by collected rainwater and a tree screen of deciduous species to help regulate temperature. The project also removes architectural barriers through a fully level circulation plan and adds universal-access features including tactile and luminous signage with colour differentiation.
The Carabanchel development is one element of the city’s broader 'Estrategia del Sur', a programme the municipality says is aimed at urban, economic and environmental transformation across several southern districts. In the same materials, Madrid says EMVS manages about 10,000 public homes and has more than 5,700 new homes in different stages of development.
