Barcelona wants to eliminate all tourist apartments by 2029

Photo: Barrena Agence France-Presse The effects of overtourism continue to be felt on housing in Barcelona, ​​especially since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic

Agence France-Presse in Barcelona

Published on June 21

• Europe

Barcelona wants to put an end to the rental of tourist apartments by 2029 to facilitate access to housing for residents, the mayor of this city in northeastern Spain announced on Friday , which receives millions of tourists per year.

“The Catalan Parliament authorizes us” now “not to renew the licenses for tourist apartments”, which “will allow us to put 10,000 accommodations back on the rental or sale market”, assured during a conference of urges the mayor of Barcelona, ​​the socialist Jaume Collboni.

According to the municipality, the licenses for tourist apartments, renewed for five years in November, will expire in November 2028.

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This means that “from 2029”, if there are no setbacks, “tourist apartments as we understand them today will disappear from the city ​​of Barcelona”, launched the councilor.

To implement this measure, Barcelona wishes to use a decree approved last year by the regional parliament of Catalonia, which regulates the number of accommodations with a tourist use license in cities where real estate pressure is greatest.

“The city cannot allow such a high number of apartments to be used for tourist activity in a context where the difficulty of access to housing and the negative effects of tourist overpopulation are obvious,” justified the council. municipal in a press release.

According to Mr. Collboni, who considers housing to be the “main” problem in Barcelona, ​​rents have increased by 68% over the last ten years in the Catalan capital, where 10,101 homes currently have a license as a tourist apartment.

Barcelona has suspended the issuance of new licenses in recent years under the leadership of former mayor Ada Colau (2015-2023), ex-housing rights activist, in order to regulate the tourist expansion of the city, the leading destination for foreign visitors in Spain.

But this has not prevented the effects of overtourism from continuing to be felt on housing, particularly since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.

To protest against this situation, several local associations called for a demonstration in the city on July 6 under the slogan: “Enough! Let’s put limits on tourism! “.

This gathering follows other similar events already organized in recent months in other Spanish tourism hotspots, such as the Canary Islands and Palma de Mallorca. .