Since Airbnb , the platform for renting private tourist apartments, arrived in Spain, there has been controversy.
And not so much for the users and tenants who are delighted with the opportunity to get a cheaper stay than in a hotel for some, and a real deal for others, but for authorities and residents who have seen how the situation is getting out of hand.
The lack of control that has been generated as a result of this new model of collaborative economy has brought with it enormous damage in numerous ways.
On the one hand, the Administration , given the lack of regulation in this field, is limited in its ability to enforce the law for users of these platforms, both through the required tourist rental licenses and through tax contributions derived from income.
But the discontent has also spread to the citizens themselves , who complain about the noise and dirt that the increase in this type of accommodation has caused just a few metres from their homes.
Likewise, cities such as Barcelona and Madrid have seen a azerbaijan phone number reduction in long-term rental apartments, as many owners prefer temporary rentals, which bring in much more money.
We are thus faced with a situation in which the supply of long-term rentals is scarce in large cities, where demand continues to increase, leading to excessive increases in rental prices.
The magnitude of the Airbnb phenomenon has been such in Madrid, Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca that in just 3 years, the supply of this type of accommodation has multiplied by 5.
According to figures from Inside Airbnb and Airdna, reported by the newspaper El Economista , Barcelona has between 17,370 and 20,500 accommodations registered on the platform, of which 70% are "illegal" as they do not have the required licenses.
This represents an increase of 325% since 2014, when there were 4,500, and 40% more than in 2016. In addition, in Barcelona, half of this offer corresponds to complete homes and 75% of the apartments are rented for more than 200 days a year.
In the case of Madrid, although the figures are lower, the problem is not a problem. With a total of 12,775 apartments offered, 60.2% are complete dwellings and 76.8% are offered for more than 200 days a year. Since 2014, the increase in supply in the capital is estimated at 5.6% and since last year alone it has increased by 38%.
More of the same occurs in Mallorca, where of the 14,858 apartments currently on offer, 87.5% are fully booked and 94.8% are offered for a good part of the year.