Barcelona set to ban short-term rentals

Barcelona has announced plans for a citywide ban on all short-term rentals amid mounting concerns that locals are being pushed out of the housing market by companies such as Airbnb and Booking.com.

The city says that by November 2028 it will cease issuing new licences to properties and not renew existing permits, meaning that from 2029 no homes will have permission to be rented as tourist accommodation.

Barcelona’s Mayor’s Jaume Collboni said there are now over 10,000 apartments registered as rentals for tourists, and the move will see a return of property to the open market.

“We are confronting what we believe is Barcelona’s largest problem,” Collboni said.

“More supply of housing is needed, and the measures we’re presenting are to provide more supply so that the working middle class does not have to leave the city because they can’t afford housing.

“This measure will not change the situation from one day to the next. These problems take time. But with this measure we are marking a turning point.”

Impact

The move will serve as a blow to online platforms such as Airbnb and Booking.com, who are increasingly under pressure from European cities over the impact short-term rentals are having on the housing market.

London, Dublin, Amsterdam and Paris have placed limits on the number of nights an apartment can be rented annually on the market, while Berlin went further in 2016 with a ban on short-stay lets of entire homes.

The German capital’s measure proved difficult to police however and was revoked in 2018 and replaced with more relaxed rules but higher fines.

In April, Madrid announced that it will pause granting new licences for tourist flats to try and ease the pressure, and it is thought that the suspension will last until 2025.

Rent prices per square metre in Barcelona increased 14 percent in the 12 months through April and are the highest among Spanish cities.

While tourism is vital to the Spanish economy, its impact on residents’ quality of life has come under increased scrutiny over the past year, with protests erupting in several cities and resort towns.

In March 2024, the European Parliament passed a regulation concerning the sharing and collection of data within the sector, which included a requirement for platforms to remove illegal advertisements.

The European Cities Alliance on Short-Term Holiday Rentals – whose members include Barcelona, Berlin, Brussels, Budapest, Madrid, Paris and Eurocities – has said there must be a “balanced regulatory approach to the subject”.

Led by the City of Amsterdam, the group has been campaigning for changes to existing legislation since 2018.

Speaking to Cities Today, Amsterdam’s EU representative Mark Boekwijt voiced support for Barcelona’s decision.

“We fully understand that our colleagues in Barcelona are taking further steps in tackling the ever-present challenge of short-term rentals to our cities.

“We share these concerns, in particular in the context of the growing pressure on the housing market and the increasing numbers of visitors to our cities. Our house-stock is primarily for residential use, this is certainly also the priority for Amsterdam.”

Industry reaction

Airbnb did not comment directly on Barcelona’s decision, but referred Cities Today to a statement from the European Holiday Home Association – a lobby group which lists Airbnb’s Head of EU Policy as one of four directors.

“Banning short-term rentals while opening the floodgates to new hotels in Barcelona will not fix housing concerns or make tourism more sustainable – it serves only to take much needed income from local families and gift-it to international hotel chains,” the statement read.

“Short-term rentals account for less than one percent of housing in Barcelona and provide much-needed income to local families, while making tourism more sustainable and less concentrated.

“The EU has already said that Barcelona’s home-sharing rules are disproportionate and will not improve housing challenges, and we hope to work with the leaders on a better way forward.”

A spokesperson from Booking.com said they were “still analysing the news and the internal impact it will have”.

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