Antoni Noguera, incoming mayor and head of Palma de Mallorca city planning, stated last week that the government will make a proposal to place a ban on all holiday homes in the city before the coming summer holidays.
Numerous neighbourhood associations on the Balearic Islands have been very vocal in the past, bringing attention to the problems that the tourism sector has on their daily life and have demanded that more severe measures (such as the Balearic Eco-Tax) are put in place to regulate the tourist accommodation industry.
These associations have been pushing the government of the Balearic Islands for a long time, to find a solution to the overpopulation of tourists which, coupled with a lack of resources on the islands during the high season is at the root of this issue.
Noguera stated that most holiday rentals in the city are illegal. However, property owners can rent properties on a short-term basis as long as they employ the Urban Rental Law (29/1994 - Ley de Arrendamientos Urbanos), this has also been a trigger for tax fraud with the tourist tax in the Balearic Islands. As a result, the President of the Balearic Islands, Francina Armengol, formally asked the Spanish government to update this law and consider all rentals which were less than 30 days, as holiday rentals.
Noguera explained that the housing situation in the city is unsustainable in its current state. He argued that price per square metre on the Balearics is the fourth most expensive in Spain. According to Noguera, holiday homes are the main cause behind overpopulation in the city, which is why he believes that banning holiday rentals and fining owners up to €40,000 is how the issue will be best tackled.
More inspections were also announced to take place during the summer, in order to identify the illegal holiday homes in the city. The town hall will carry out its plan to forbid all short-term apartment rentals in the city this summer, but current holiday homes with licences will not be affected.
Q&A
Can they really ban holiday rentals in Palma?
No, they can't ban holiday rentals but they can report all illegal holiday homes.
The town hall has no authority to sanction or to ban holiday rentals in the city. Only the Balearic government can do this. In addition, with more than 3,000 holiday homes in Palma, it’s going to be very difficult to carry out the necessary inspections, considering that the town hall only has 15 property inspectors on the job.
The Holiday Rentals Association of the Balearic Islands (APTUR-Baleares) have rejected Noguera’s comments, arguing that most of the information he provided was incorrect considering the current legal situation.
Do holiday home owners need to worry?
The tourism industry of the Balearic Islands has been in the spotlight for some time now. It's certainly a problem that the authorities are slowly trying to solve.
The government of the Balearic Islands are currently developing a tourism law, but are yet to announce a final due date. Which means that, even if the government agrees with what has Noguera announced, any prohibition will need to wait until the release of the new law. Until the new law is released, everything will continue as it is.