In the fight against housing shortages and high rents, Barcelona wants to introduce a ban on renting out holiday apartments to tourists. The licenses of the 10,101 apartments currently approved for short-term rentals will be revoked by November 2028, Mayor Jaume Collboni announced on Friday. “We are tackling Barcelona’s biggest problem,” he explained.
In the past ten years, rents have risen by 68 percent and the cost of buying a house by 38 percent. After the ban, the apartments are used by city residents or come onto the market for rent or sale.
The Spanish Housing Minister Isabel Rodriguez welcomed the announcement on the short message service X. In contrast, the association for tourist accommodation in Barcelona, Apartur, said: “Collboni is making a mistake that will lead to more poverty and unemployment.” The ban will lead to more illegal tourist accommodation.
A statement from the rental platform Airbnb was not initially available. Hotels could benefit from the measure. Collboni has signaled that restrictions for hotels could be relaxed.
There are currently protests against mass tourism in many places in Spain, especially in the Canary Islands and Mallorca.