Estate agents fire back at angry protesters who told them to ‘leave Majorca alone’ | World | News
Estate agents operating on the popular Spanish island of Majorca have hit back at angry protesters who accused them of selling properties to foreigners at the expense of local families. Two weeks ago pressure group SOS Residents sent a letter to members of ABINI, the national and international association of real estate agents, saying: “Every luxury villa sold to a millionaire, a retiree or a foreign family means a local family without a home […] Mallorca residents no longer want you to come to speculate, make profits and evacuate our towns. Do work in your own home.”
ABINI, a private group of agencies, many of them international, operating at the top end of the property market with a mostly foreign client base, responded by questioning whether anti-mass tourism protesters wanted a complete ban on the island’s most vital industry. Calling for a “state agreement on housing”, the association said: “We are also residents of the Balearic islands. Our children study here and we share the same problems. Do they want to ban tourism so that no one comes to enjoy the Balearic islands?”
In the statement signed by ABINI president Daniel Arenas, while touching on the legal problems that will be caused by the ban on selling houses to foreigners, it was pointed out that “the migration of Majorcans has the same effect on prices and supply in other regions of Spain.” The report stated that the housing problem “affects society not only locally but also internationally.” Majorca Daily Bulletin.
Regarding the causes of rising house prices in Majorca, the association blamed “lack of new housing construction and space stagnation, enormous increase in material prices, housing taxes, lack of social housing and incessant political disputes”.
The statement continued: “We don’t set the prices, the owners do. And it’s not true that every luxury home sale leaves a local family homeless.” “Less than a third of sales in the Balearic Islands are made to foreigners, and most of these are made directly between foreigners. It is natural and legitimate for any homeowner to want to obtain the maximum possible value for their home.”
He added that his partners are working hard to dispel the erroneous myth among sellers that for every home “there is a stranger looking to buy it.”
In Majorca, as in many tourist destinations in Spain, house prices and rents have gone beyond what many residents can afford; Some workers even had to live in cars, caravans or tents. Meanwhile, many properties remain empty for much of the year because they are bought as second homes or rented to tourists for short stays, greatly reducing the long-term housing supply for local people.
Property owners have realized that they can earn much more from one-year rentals through platforms like Airbnb; This further exacerbated the crisis, which was affected by high tourist pressure and a lack of affordable housing development. At the same time, wages on the island have failed to keep pace with the rising cost of living, leaving many working people, particularly those in the hospitality and service industries, unable to stay near their jobs or secure stable housing.
Authorities are now under pressure to take action. The proposals include stricter regulations on short-term tourist rentals, taxes on vacant or non-resident-owned homes, and large-scale social housing projects funded by the Spanish government and EU grants. Some councils are already imposing caps on new holiday letting licenses, while others are calling for more radical reforms to protect local people.
