VERA app, A Digital Tool for Diagnosing Housing Vulnerability in Spain

Ben Schmidt on 3 December 2025

An online diagnostic platform to assess and prevent housing vulnerability and residential exclusion

VERA‑app is a digital tool to support efforts against housing exclusion and to improve access to decent, affordable housing in Spain. The platform emerged from the need to systematically assess vulnerability and risk factors faced by households when accessing or maintaining housing. By collecting and analysing data about socioeconomic, demographic and residential circumstances, VERA‑app helps identify households or situations at risk of exclusion, providing a structured, evidence‑based input for social intervention and policy planning.

The tool aims to offer a common diagnostic language and shared criteria among social services, public authorities, housing providers, and other stakeholders. This enables reliable tracking of vulnerability, easier communication between actors, and better-informed decisions. The introduction of VERA‑app is framed within a broader effort by Provivienda to respond to Spain’s growing housing emergency and structural difficulties related to affordability, access, and social inclusion.

Beyond diagnosis, VERA‑app supports follow-up and monitoring: it facilitates longitudinal tracking of individuals or households over time, allowing social organisations and public bodies to evaluate effectiveness of interventions, identify recurring risks, and adapt support strategies. The tool’s design draws on predictive statistical models and synthesizes extensive data and research about housing vulnerability.

By offering a transparent, accessible and shared diagnostic resource, VERA‑app contributes to redefining social housing practice, from reactive assistance to proactive prevention. It empowers social actors to detect risk early, promote equitable access to housing, and base interventions on credible data rather than ad‑hoc assessments.

Characteristics of innovation

Bank of innovations, Fully inclusive cities, Homelessness and the right to housing, Information and planning, Integrated care, New model of intervention, New service, New technological tool, Poverty and exclusion, Prediction and prevention

Location

Spain

Partners/ Founders

Government of Spain (Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and the 2030 Agenda), Member of Housing Europe (European Federation of Public, Cooperative and Social Housing Providers)

Genesis

VERA‑app was created by Provivienda as part of its mission to guarantee the right to adequate housing and to respond to Spain’s structural housing crisis with data-driven, preventive tools.

Implementation level

VERA‑app is being officially presented and adopted for diagnostic use by social housing stakeholders across Spain. Its uptake in recent policy‑oriented events reflects growing recognition and potential for broad implementation.

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