by In Spanish cities suffering from overtourism, rules have slowly been introduced to help control numbers, including limits on the number of tourist rentals.
Despite this, statistics from the Spanish government show that the number of tourist apartments has increased by nine percent in the past year, with more than 340,000 now registered. This means that in some cities there is one tourist rental for every 1.5 square kilometers and for every 139 locals.
But tourist congestion is only part of the issue. On the other side is Spain’s acute housing crisis, which means that fewer and fewer people can afford to raise rents and purchase prices. Many young people in particular are unable to access accommodation and are forced to live at home well into their 30s.
The proliferation of Airbnb style apartment contributing to this by increasing market prices, as well as reducing the availability of property for local people.
A couple of weeks ago, Barcelona announced the worst step yet – the intention to end all tourist rentals by 2028. This received a mixed response from local Catalans and the city’s foreign-born population, which has now reached 25 percent.
Locals welcome Spain’s crackdown on holiday rentals
“Long story short, it’s good news for the locals,” says resident Mika Casalis. “Every summer the rent goes through the roof.”
Amanda Ditzler, who used to live in a building with 15 Airbnbs, agrees. “I felt unsafe,” she says. “At the weekend there was overspending on the building and a lot tourists the premises will be treated as a hotel, leaving a mess, playing loud music, etc.
“I think people should be able to use their property as they wish, but I also think that if you treat your residence as a commercial business, you should have different rules and work hard to show respect for the lives of others. Most people i Barcelona it does not lose tourism rent.”
But foreign residents Brian Lund Larsen and Alex Nowakowski aren’t sure they’ll actually solve the housing issue.
“I’m not sure it will do much for him rental pricesbut I don’t care either – I don’t want to be woken up by parties of drunk tourists in the middle of the night or find them half-naked on our stairs in the morning,” says Brian.
“Abolishing thousands of legal Airbnbs in a city of 1.6 million won’t solve the problem,” says Alex. “If anything it will only light a bigger fire under the black market that already exists rentals. I think the focus needs to be on building more housing.”
Where else in Spain are tourist apartments going down?
But Barcelona is just one city in a long list of Spanish destinations putting a position against tourist rentals.
In April i Madrid – a city with more than 14,000 tourist apartments, almost twice as many Barcelona – the City Council announced that it would temporarily suspend new tourist licenses.
During May, Valentine City Hall also said it would suspend the issuance of new licenses for at least one year, with the possibility of an extension for one more year. Recently, Valencian police have been cracking down on illegal tourist apartments and increasing fines for violations.
the capital of Andalusia Seville It also decided last month not to renew any licenses for tourist rentals in the main neighborhoods of the historic center.
Málaga, which has the third highest number of tourist apartments in Spain, although it is the sixth largest in terms of population, has also introduced restrictions. It no longer allows new tourist apartments to operate unless they have their own separate entrance. As most of them are located in apartment buildings, it ensures that fewer people can apply for permits.
“There is a housing crisis that cannot be ignored,” says Hanni Martini, a food expert based in Málaga. “I don’t know what the answer is but it certainly doesn’t welcome tourists. Málaga – like many provinces in Spain – relies heavily on tourism. It is our single largest industry.”
“I live in the historic center and it still feels like a ‘neighbourhood’ full of locals. Yes tourist rentals in our building, but we had no problem with them.
“I think when we travel we should try to support more sustainable tourism, like staying indoors hotelsshop from small independent shops and eat in locally owned establishments.”
Most tourist rentals are owned by large businesses
Some argue that the removal of tourist apartments means that local people will not have the opportunity to monetize their properties and create their own income to benefit from tourism. But the truth is that most of the properties are mostly owned by big businesses, not individuals.
For example, according to the Barcelona City Council, 34.8 percent of tourist license holders have only one apartment, while the rest have five or more.
Overall, the locals seem to feel that these measures are at least a step in the right direction, even if they are not enough to solve all the issues.
