Spanish regions take measures to regulate tourist apartments

The proliferation of tourist apartments in Spain, which coincides with record tourist figures and an escalation in property prices. living placehas become a major political and social issue for the most affected regions and municipalities, which are taking action to address the situation.

Toughening the requirements for carrying out the activity, reinforcing inspections, decreeing moratoriums on the granting of licenses or restricting the opening of accommodation in the most stressed areas are some of the most popular strategies among regions and municipalities, which are the ones with the authority in this matter.

Spain is receiving a record number of foreign tourists, with 33.2 million visitors between January and May, a 13.6% more than a year earlier, and many of them are not staying in hotels, but in tourist apartments.

The experimental statistics of the National Institute of Statistics that measure the number of tourist homes in Spain estimates that, as of February 2024, there were 351,389 accommodations of these characteristics in the country, of which almost 70% They are concentrated in Andalusia, the Valencian Community, Catalonia and the Canary Islands.

In Andalusia (south), pressure from Tourist Use Housing (VUT) has already triggered protests in Malaga and Cadiz, with thousands of protesters against the proliferation of tourist apartments, and the regional government approved a decree in January that empowers local councils to limit the maximum number of tourist apartments per building or sector.

In addition, Malaga City Council will require new tourist apartments to have a separate entrance, Granada City Council has temporarily suspended the granting of licences while it draws up new regulations for use, and Cadiz has also stopped processing new licences for VUT in the old town.

The Canary Islands (Atlantic), which saw large demonstrations against mass tourism on April 20, banned VUTs in tourist or mixed-use areas (i.e. practically the entire archipelago) in 2015, but the decree was dismantled by court rulings.

Now a Holiday Home Law is pending, which the regional Government plans to approve at the beginning of 2025 and sets precise limits: holiday homes may not exceed 10% of the residential building capacity of each island and in the smallest ones the limit rises to twenty%.

In the Balearic Islands (Mediterranean), tourist pressure is also the focus of public debate, and specifically the illegal rental of flats is the main issue for the administrations.

In Catalonia, the Barcelona City Council announced that the city will no longer have tourist accommodation in 2029, as the council will not renew the licences for this activity nor issue new ones, which has put the entire sector on a war footing.

Last December, the regional parliament approved a decree-law regulating tourist accommodation, although the Catalan government promised to modify the regulations so that it would only be mandatory in 140 municipalities, and not in the 262 initially planned.

In the Valencian Community (east), the regional government intends to unify the legislation on this matter and will link the granting of the license to the owner of the property in order to avoid speculation in the sale, so that if it is transferred to third parties, the authorization will lapse and have to be requested again.

In the city of Valencia, in May, the suspension of licenses for tourist apartments located in communities of owners and commercial premises was approved for one year, a moratorium that is already applied in the historic center and will now be extended to almost the entire city.

Furthermore, the Spanish government itself wants to intensify the control of tourist accommodation, and this week announced its intention to limit temporary rentals, requiring that they be justified in the contracts. It also intends to reform the law so that residents can authorise or veto tourist apartments in their properties.

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