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Spain’s Minister of Housing and Urban Agenda, Isabel Rodríguez, has announced plans to reform the Property Law to address the controversial issue of tourist apartments in residential buildings. The proposed reform aims to give greater decision-making power to neighbouring communities regarding the short-term rental of holiday apartments within their buildings.

 

Tuesday’s announcement came hot on the heels of a shock statement from Barcelona’s mayor vowing to revoke the licences on more than 10,000 tourist rentals by 2028.

 

But if the changes proposed by Ms Rodríguez are implemented, they will apply to all of Spain, not just Catalonia. And the suggestion does have precedence. A recent Supreme Court ruling officially recognised the rental of housing for tourist use as an economic activity, and allowed residents in several complexes in Oviedo and San Sebastián to veto holiday lets in their neighbourhoods.

 

The current Property Law technically requires the vote of three-fifths of community fee-paying owners before an apartment can be designated as a tourist rental in an urbanisation, but the minister, acknowledging that so many holiday lets are pushing up prices for locals, wants to take this a step further.

 

Her proposal aims to go beyond the existing safeguard, allowing homeowners more involvement in deciding whether apartments in their buildings can be used for tourist rentals.

 

Ms Rodríguez criticised the impact of tourist apartments on the right to access decent housing, noting that they drive up rental prices and limit residential options. She praised regional efforts to address this issue locally, but emphasised the need for correct regulation to improve the quality standards of the tourism sector.

 

On the other hand, FEMP (Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces) President María José García-Pelayo stressed the importance of protecting tourism while avoiding the “tourismophilia” vs. “tourismphobia” debate, which has led to protests and anti-tourist sentiments up and down the country in recent months.

 

According to Ms Rodríguez, the proposed reform aims to strike a balance between the rights of locals and the needs of the vital tourism industry.

 

 

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