According to reports, thousands of people are protesting in Madrid and around 50 cities and towns across Spain due to a rental crisis. Reportedly, rents in Spain have been increasing rapidly in recent years, have risen by 12.2% in the past year and are nearly double what they were 10 years ago. According to a report, an estimation is that the country is short of 700,000 homes based on supply and demand.
Reportedly, protests began when an elderly resident in Madrid was forcibly evicted from her flat because she couldn’t afford an increse in rent which had been 500 euro per month and rose to 2,650 euro following a change of ownership. According to reports, the woman who had to be taken out of her home on a stretcher has since been allowed to return, but protests have continued because parliament have rejected measures that were designed to address the housing crisis and protect tenants.
Reportedly, the first proposal banned the eviction of vulnerable people and included legislation regarding extending short term rentals; the second was to make leases automatically renew when they expired, making them indefinite. According to reports, Spanish mp’s rejected the first proposal by 178 votes to 172, and the second proposal by 184 votes to 186.
Reportedly, protests also concern the policy of vulture funds or investment funds buying or bulk buying undervalued property that may be facing financial, legal or physical problems. According to a report, protestors in Valencia have removed barriers and thrown objects at police who have responded with rubber bullets. Reportedly, nine police officers were injured and five people arrested.