Huechuraba Residents Demand Urgent Social Housing and Action Against Land Speculation with 700-Person March

Original article: Huechuraba: 700 pobladores marcharon para exigir agilización de viviendas sociales y freno a la especulación del suelo

700 Residents of Huechuraba March for Immediate Social Housing and an End to Real Estate Speculation

On Saturday morning, nearly 700 residents gathered by the Cerro de La Pincoya to demand that the Ministry of Housing expedite their projects and make necessary adjustments to the Housing Emergency Plan and the 2026 Budget, both currently under discussion in Congress.

According to the movement’s statement, they are urging the SERVIU «to expedite the processes for acquiring land and applications for subsidies related to the Zona Sur (500 families) and Guanaco projects in Huechuraba (808 families)».

Luna Maturana, spokesperson for the movement, states that «Our families cannot continue to wait after fulfilling all requirements; it would represent a failure of the current management that we are not willing to let happen, which is why we declare ourselves in active mobilization until we have certainties».

View the full statement here

Watch the video of the mobilization

2026 Budget Concerns

Another reason for the protest is the 2026 Budget of the MINVU currently being debated in Congress, which, if approved as is, would halve the DS49 subsidies compared to those given in 2025 (see table).

Source: Proposed 2026 MINVU budget currently in discussion.

For Simón González, spokesperson for the movement, «this means that the timelines for committees searching for land, who have promises of purchases or are waiting to apply, will be delayed,» impacting thousands of families nationwide.

«We believe that priorities need to change, increasing resources for social housing and reallocating funds from debt programs, especially reducing resources for the interest-free loans provided by SERVIU to constructors, where a third of the entire budget goes» adds the leader.

Extension of the Housing Emergency Plan

Congress is currently discussing extending the Housing Emergency Plan, which expires in December 2025 and has been the guiding framework for the ministry’s work over the past four years.

Members of the Movimiento Solidario Vida Digna argue that regarding social housing, «the underlying issue is not a lack of money or land, but an increasing need for subsidies and greater savings to sustain inflated land prices, as large landowners speculate and create barriers for families in need», adds Maturana.

Mobilizations in Other Comunas

During the day, marches also took place in the comunas of San Ramón and San Joaquín, alongside concentrations of housing committees in the comunas of Pedro Aguirre Cerda, La Florida, Macul, and Ñuñoa.