Andorra Launches €21.6M Tender for Affordable Rental Buildings

The Andorran Ministry of Presidency, Economy, Work and Housing has published a decree in an extraordinary edition of the BOPA launching a public tender to acquire entire buildings for the affordable rental housing stock, with an initial €21.6 million budget from executive surpluses. Property owners can submit offers until 30 June for buildings potentially yielding around 150 units, with the allocation expandable to €35 million if market opportunities arise.

Offers will be scored on a 100-point scale, split evenly between price and technical criteria. The remaining 50 technical points prioritise immediate habitability—awarding 20 points for buildings ready to occupy within 30 days of the purchase deed—and up to 10 points for proposals needing no reform or holding pre-approved plans from the Official College of Architects of Andorra. Further points go to higher unit counts (up to 5 for 50 or more units, scaling down progressively), low refurbishment costs (5 points if 5% or less of purchase price, dropping to zero above 10%), parking coverage (up to 5 points for 96-100% ratio per unit), and proximity to Andorra la Vella's km 0 marker (5 points for the closest, scaled mathematically by distance). Blocks under construction qualify if habitable by the end of 2027. Pricing for the other 50 points uses a formula comparing offers to official valuations, which already factor in refurbishment, favouring the deepest discounts.

The tender responds to intense demand, exemplified by 96 registered applicants vying for a single renovated one-bedroom flat at Roureda de Sansa 8 in Andorra la Vella. The 58.28 sqm unit—featuring a double bedroom, full bathroom, equipped kitchen with vitroceramic hob, oven and extractor, and an empty living-dining area, but no elevator—carries an initial rent of €623.67 monthly, plus €32.40 for a 3.11 sqm storage space, totalling €656.07. Eligible bidders from the affordable housing register as of 10 June can compete from 17 June to 2 July. Final rents adjust by income—up to 30% of household earnings or market price minus 25%—with social affairs subsidies available for those exceeding the threshold.

Separately, the government has approved transferring Borda Nova I, a nine-storey passive house on Carrer Terranova (also referred to as Terra Vella) in Andorra la Vella, to the National Housing Institute. Donated free by the parish in March 2020, the building adds 44 units—15 one-bedroom, 23 two-bedroom, six three-bedroom, averaging 80 sqm—to the public stock, bringing the total to 265 or 266 units, eight reserved for emergencies. Rents average €830 monthly at €10.70 per sqm, each including one parking space from six underground levels with 200 car and 20 motorcycle spots; surplus spaces and a ground-floor commercial unit revert to the parish. Adjudication will begin in the coming weeks this summer. Minister Spokesperson Guillem Casal described it as Andorra's first public passive house, achieving high energy self-sufficiency, and reiterated aid options for families spending over 30% of income on rent.

Borda Nova II, with 42 more units on the site, is due by early 2029. Five other projects in Ordino, Escaldes-Engordany, Sant Julià de Lòria and La Massana near 500 total units, supporting a target of 650 regulated rentals, or 7.3 public units per 1,000 inhabitants.