Short-term rentals have surged in major cities and coastal areas, further inflating housing costs. “No matter who governs, we must defend housing rights,” activists shouted as they shook keychains in Madrid, where over 150,000 protesters marched through the heart of the capital, according to the local tenants’ union.
Data from property website Idealista revealed that average rents in Spain have doubled, and house prices have risen by 44% over the past decade, vastly outpacing wage growth. Meanwhile, the supply of rental properties has halved since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
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“They’re kicking all of us out to make tourist flats,” said Margarita Aizpuru, a 65-year-old resident of the popular Lavapies neighbourhood. Nearly 100 families in her building had been told by the owners that their rental contracts would not be renewed, she explained.
Homeowners’ associations and experts argue that current regulations discourage long-term rentals, with landlords finding it more profitable and secure to rent to tourists or foreigners for short stays rather than offer long-term leases.
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Spain welcomed a record 94 million tourists in 2024, making it the second most-visited country in the world, alongside an influx of thousands of migrants. Both factors have contributed to a housing deficit of around 500,000 homes, according to the Bank of Spain.
Official figures indicate that only about 120,000 new homes are being built each year in Spain—just a sixth of the number constructed before the 2008 financial crisis—worsening the already dire shortage.
Wendy Davila, 26, stated that the problem was not confined to the city centre, as rents were unaffordable “everywhere.”
“It cannot be that to live in Madrid you need to share a flat with four others,” she added.
(With inputs from Reuters)
(Edited by : Jerome Anthony)
