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Spain has launched a serious clampdown on Airbnb properties, ordering the elimination of over 65,000 vacation rental listings throughout the nation that fail to adjust to laws.
The Spanish Client Rights Ministry cited a number of violations, together with lacking licence numbers, not specifying whether or not the proprietor was a person or an organization, and discrepancies between listed data and official information.
The crackdown comes towards the backdrop of Spain’s rising housing affordability disaster, which has sparked widespread protests over rising rents and residential costs.
Many Spaniards blame short-term leases on platforms like Airbnb for worsening housing shortages, significantly in well-liked vacationer locations like Madrid and Barcelona.
‘No extra excuses’
On Monday, Spain’s Client Rights Minister Pablo Bustinduy stated the transfer aimed to deal with the final “lack of management” and “illegality” within the vacation rental enterprise.
“No extra excuses. Sufficient with defending those that make a enterprise out of the fitting to housing in our nation,” he instructed reporters.
The nationwide enforcement primarily targets listings in Madrid, Andalusia, and Catalonia, the place tourism is most closely concentrated.
The ministry stated it had notified Airbnb in regards to the noncompliant listings months in the past, however that the corporate had appealed the transfer in court docket.
Spain’s authorities stated Madrid’s excessive court docket had backed the order despatched to Airbnb.
Bustinduy stated it concerned the instant elimination of 5,800 rental listings from the location. Two subsequent orders could be issued till the whole of 65,935 removals is reached, he stated.
Airbnb intends to attraction new ruling
Official information reveals Spain had roughly 321,000 licensed vacation leases as of November final year- a 15 per cent improve since 2020 – with many extra working with out correct licenses.
The Client Rights Ministry opened an investigation into Airbnb in December final yr.
Airbnb instructed Euronews Journey it is going to proceed to attraction towards all choices linked to this case.
“No proof of rule-breaking by hosts has been put ahead, and the choice goes towards EU and Spanish regulation, and a earlier ruling by the Spanish Supreme Court docket,” a spokesperson stated.
“The foundation explanation for the reasonably priced housing disaster in Spain is an absence of provide to satisfy demand. The answer is to construct extra houses – the rest is a distraction.”
The spokesperson added that governments internationally are seeing that regulating Airbnb doesn’t alleviate housing issues or return houses to the market: “It solely hurts native households who depend on internet hosting to afford their houses and rising prices.”
Barcelona bans short-term leases
Final yr, the Spanish authorities launched a basic crackdown on vacation leases amid rising frustration amongst residents who say mass tourism is aggravating a housing disaster.
Locals say they’re being priced out of their cities because of gentrification and landlords favouring extra profitable short-term vacationer lets.
Barcelona has already taken aggressive measures to deal with the issue, saying plans to remove all 10,000 licensed short-term rental flats by 2028 to prioritise housing for everlasting residents.