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Barcelona plans to end short-term rentals by 2029 to tackle the housing crisis.
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Rents in Barcelona increased by 36% between 2018 and 2022 due to a wider Spanish rental crisis.
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Opponents argue that the ban will not have a significant impact on housing availability or rental prices.
Barcelona plans to end short-term rentals after complaints that tourism has priced locals out of the housing market.
In a blow to platforms like Airbnb, the Spanish city will stop issuing new permits and not renew existing ones, Barcelona Mayor Jaume Collboni said at a press conference on Friday. By 2029, homes will no longer be allowed to function as short-term tourist accommodation.
“The city cannot allow such a large number of flats to be used for tourist activities at a time when access to housing is difficult and when the negative consequences of tourist overcrowding are clear,” Collboni said.
Like other Spanish cities, Barcelona requires properties to have a tourist license before they can be listed as rental properties. There are currently approximately 10,000 houses registered as tourist rentals.
The move is the latest by Spanish authorities to ease the housing crisis and reduce rental costs. According to an EY real estate report, rents in Barcelona rose by 36% between 2018 and 2022, while those in the Spanish capital Madrid rose by 16%.
Barcelona became a hotspot for short-term rentals as tourists flocked to the city, with the number of tourists rising from 7.4 million in 2012 to 15.6 million last year. Government officials have spoken to Airbnb and similar platforms over the years, imposing fines and various types of regulations that fell far short of the new plan not to renew the licenses.
Airbnb did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment, which was sent outside regular business hours.
In April 2023, the Spanish government passed a landmark housing law to tackle the problem, including caps on rent increases, price caps in special zones and an end to surprise evictions. Earlier this year, the government also scrapped the ‘Golden Visa’ for non-EU nationals, saying the visa program increases pressure on housing supply.
But critics say the ban in Barcelona will do little to change the rental climate.
Opposition politician Damià Calvet said not all 10,000 homes will return to the market.
“It is not realistic to pretend that all 10,000 homes will be zoned residential,” he told local media. Calvet said not all licensed houses are actually rented to tourists; many owners retain the license simply to add value to the property in case they want to sell later.
“Tourist apartments represent only 0.77% of the housing stock in Barcelona,” Enrique Alcantara, president of the Barcelona Tourist Apartments Association, told media after the announcement. “All this will do is increase the number of illegal tourist rentals.”
Global short-term rental restrictions
Other cities are similarly considering short-term rental restrictions to control skyrocketing housing costs in what is being considered the “Airbnb effect.”
In Irvine, California, a ban on short-term stays in 2018 caused the cost of long-term rentals to drop by 3%, or an average drop of $114 per month, according to a study published in Real Estate Economics. Late last year, New York City made a similar move.
Cities like Vancouver, Tokyo, London, Amsterdam and Paris have all imposed restrictions on the short-term rental market.
Some Southeast Asian countries have banned short-term rentals completely.
In Singapore, it is illegal to rent properties for less than three months, while Thailand, like Irvine, bans rentals for less than thirty days.
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