Regulatory pressure on Spain’s holiday rental market is beginning to show significant results. Consequently, tourist apartments in Catalonia have declined sharply, with the region losing nearly 6,000 properties in the last year alone.
According to fresh data from the National Statistics Institute (INE), the region saw an 11.3% drop in available tourist rentals compared to 2024. This sharp decline coincides with the enforcement of a new state registry. The registry requires properties to operate legally on digital platforms. Meanwhile, tighter local controls aim to ease the housing crisis.
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Tourist apartments in Catalonia hit lowest figures since 2020
The reduction leaves Catalonia’s total stock of tourist apartments at 46,915 properties. This is the lowest figure recorded by the INE since it began tracking the sector in 2020. Since that benchmark year, approximately 63,200 flats were listed for tourist use. Therefore, the market has contracted by nearly 26%. In effect, one in four tourist apartments in the region has disappeared in the last six years.
The decline is not accidental. It correlates directly with a suite of control measures. These government measures aim to curb mass tourism. Furthermore, they seek to return properties to the residential rental market. Currently, tourist flats make up just 1.2% of all registered housing in Catalonia.
Barcelona province sees steepest fall for tourist apartments in Catalonia
The province of Barcelona has been hit hardest by the contraction. Data shows that nearly 40% of the tourist flats operating there in 2020 have since shut down. The inventory has plummeted from nearly 26,000 units to just over 15,700 today.
In the last year alone, the province lost 2,416 apartments. This represents a 13% drop. Consequently, the province of Girona now hosts more tourist flats (17,754) than Barcelona (15,741). Within Barcelona city itself, regulations are particularly strict. As a result, the proportion of tourist flats stands at a mere 0.61% of total housing.
A national trend for holiday rentals
The trend in Catalonia mirrors a wider shift across Spain. Nationally, the number of tourist flats fell by 12.4% compared to 2024. This is a loss of 52,000 units, bringing the total to 329,764. This represents the largest drop in the historical series.
Despite the national decline, the incidence of holiday rentals remains heavily concentrated in specific regions. For instance, Andalusia and the Canary Islands account for nearly half of all tourist apartments in the state.
Sources from the Ministry of Housing state that these figures “reflect the results” of recent policy interventions. These include the mandatory state registry. Additionally, changes to the horizontal property law empower neighbour associations to veto holiday rentals in their buildings.
“The Ministry of Housing continues to work to ensure that the maximum number of available homes are allocated to residential rental at affordable prices,” ministry sources emphasised. They also pointed to ongoing collaboration with platforms such as Booking.com and Airbnb. This collaboration aims to remove illegal advertisements, further tightening the net on non-compliant listings.
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