Rental housing prices increased by 7.3% in April compared to the same month last year and by 1.2% month-on-month, the fourth consecutive record increase so far this year, given tight supply In, according to what real estate portal Fotokasa said on Tuesday.
Although this is the lowest year-on-year increase in the last five months, it is a new record of €11.69 per square meter in average rental price in Spain, highlighting the problems that plague the Spanish property market .
Maria Matos, Director of Studies at Fotokasa explained, “This huge increase in price is caused by the great imbalance between supply and demand and this tension pushes prices up.”
“The main problem – and one that has grown over the past year and a half – is the lack of residential rental offers. An enormous amount of properties have been sold, converted to tourist rentals or remain vacant,” he said. ,
He also pointed out that the “current legal uncertainty in housing law” pushed owners to other markets.
The left-wing coalition government in power last April introduced a bill to reduce rental prices in high-demand areas and cap annual increases to help the most vulnerable groups.
However, the bill did not directly address short-term rentals, and experts feared it could encourage property owners to do business with tourists and trigger an uncontrolled boom in short-term rentals that could further destabilize the market. does.
Bank of Spain governor Pablo Hernandez de Casas sent a warning along similar lines last week, indicating the government’s plan could deliver the exact opposite of those expected.
“Economic studies show that price controls can produce an adverse effect on rental supply, both in quantity and quality, so that ultimately, far from reducing the price of rental housing, it leads to a higher price level,” de Cos said in a speech.
In terms of autonomous communities, the April report named Madrid and the Balearic Islands as the most expensive to rent a home, with prices of 16.41 Euro/m2 and 16.23 Euro/m2, respectively. This is followed by six more communities with prices above €10.00/m2 per month: Catalonia (€15.63/m2 per month), the Basque Country (€14.00/m2 per month), the Canary Islands (€12.27 /m2 per month) ), Cantabria (€11.35/m2 per month), Comunidad Valenciana (€11.02/m2 per month) and Navarra (€10.99/m2 per month).
