Princesa 49 is a cooperative housing project in Barcelona, Spain, developed by Sostre Cívic. It is described as the first project of its kind in the city to operate under a “cessió d’ús” model, a cooperative tenure arrangement in which residents have use rights rather than individual ownership. The project is located in the La Ribera neighbourhood, in the historic centre of Barcelona.
The initiative began in 2014, when Sostre Cívic and the City Council of Barcelona explored the possibility of a pilot project for cooperative housing in the city. According to the project information, the building was transferred by the Barcelona City Council to Sostre Cívic in 2016 through a 75-year surface right. This agreement required the cooperative to carry out a full rehabilitation of the building, with the stated aims of improving accessibility, reducing energy consumption, and creating a reference model for future projects.
Residents moved into Princesa 49 in June 2018 after a participatory process and one year of construction work. The project includes five homes of between 45 and 65 square metres, as well as three shared community spaces distributed across the building. It was developed as a collective housing initiative with stable monthly fees and an initial financial contribution from residents.
Sostre Cívic is the developer and organising cooperative behind the project. It is a non-profit organisation focused on cooperative housing and the wider promotion of non-speculative housing models in Catalonia.