Spain clamped on Airbnb when tourism returns to the summer

The Spanish government has called for the delete lists of almost 66,000 facilities on the Airbnb rental platform on the grounds that they violate the rules to place tourists.

The clamp occurs when protests against excessive tourism began before the summer season. Thousands of people gathered on the Canary Islands on Sunday.

The Minister of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and the Agenda of 2030 Pablus Bustinduy stated that the rental properties “violated different norms concerning housing for tourists’ use.”

The Madrid court ruling that Airbnb should immediately abandon the market of 5800 property facilities given by the ministry.

The properties are in six regions: Madrid, Andalusia, Catalonia, Valencia, the Basque country and the Balearic Islands.

The Bustind Ministry is now waiting for further court rulings on the rest of 60,000 properties, the lists of which consider it illegal.

According to the ministry, the properties he identified either did not give a license number, provided the erroneous number or did not indicate the legal status of the owner to show whether they conduct on a professional basis or as a private person.

He described the court’s decision as “a clear victory for those who fight for the protection of housing.”

Bustinda added that “it may be possible that economic interest does not have the benefits of housing and that no campaign, as if large or powerful, above the law.”

In recent months, housing has emerged as the greatest concern of the Spaniards from the spiral costs, especially in major cities and cities.

Read on: Spanish fighting against record tourism

In recent decades, the average rental cost has doubled, while salaries have not lagged behind.

Tourist apartments were recognized by many as the main reason for the problem, depriving the locals of housing.

Spain is the second most popular tourist point after France, with 94 million foreign visitors in 2024, which increased by 13% last year.

Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that earlier this year “too much Airbnbs and not enough houses”, and he promised to prevent “uncontrollable” expansion of the use of properties for tourism.

Some local authorities also started acting against Airbnb.

The Barcelona Town Hall stated that it eliminates its 10,000 short -term tourist apartments By the end of 2028.

Others have taken another approach. In recent months, Airbnb has reached agreements with local authorities in the Canary Islands, Ibiza and Murcia aimed at ensuring real estate owners complying with tourists’ lease.

Airbnb replied to the court ruling and the proclamation of Bustind, insisting that it would appeal against the decisions related to the case, and that there was no evidence that violated the rules.

He also cited the ruling of the Spanish Supreme Court in 2022, which established that the responsibility for the list of information was involved in each real estate, not from a company that was a “neutral mediator” rather than a real estate supplier.

The firm also made a broader moment in the field of Spanish housing.

“The root cause of the available housing in Spain is a lack of supply to meet the demand,” the press secretary said. “Governments around the world see that the regulation of Airbnb does not facilitate housing problems and does not return homes to the market – it only harms local families who are counting on holding to afford houses and cost growth.”

Last summer, Spain saw a wave of shares against excessive tourism in many popular areas, and the influence on housing is the biggest resentment.

As the number of foreign visitors, Spain quickly approaches 100 million a year, the excitement is expected to continue this summer.

On Sunday, several thousand people took to the streets on the Canary Islands under the slogan “Canary has a restriction”.

In Majorca, a group called Less tourism, more of life (Less tourism, more life) is preparing for such actions, and the protest is scheduled for June 15.