Malaga does not want more tourist apartments. At least in the neighborhoods where they currently proliferate the most. To prevent the number of these people from increasing rapidly in terms of long-term rental availability and prices, the local government decided to activate its administrative weapons. Even though it was only at half throttle. Next week, he will approve an amendment to his General Plan (PGOU) that will in practice allow him to veto the opening of new apartments for tourists. Of course, it will only do this in 43 neighborhoods, which according to them are the most saturated neighborhoods.

This isn’t the first time Malaga has moved to restrict vacation rentals. And the City Council is already warning that this may not be the last.

New tourist apartments? Adhere to. In efforts to stem the boom in tourist apartments, Malaga City Council has opted for a strategy more or less similar to that of Seville: a surgical veto focusing only on the most saturated neighborhoods. Rather than freezing licensing like Madrid or emulating Barcelona in its efforts to end all holiday lettings in the medium term, Malaga has declared war on these accommodations only in certain neighbourhoods.

More precisely, the City Council will prevent the registration of new tourist apartments in 43 areas where the supply is already high. In the remaining neighborhoods, the restrictions set in July will remain the same. Both measures, the conditions approved this summer and the new veto in 43 neighborhoods that the City Council now wants to promote, essentially have the same legal basis: an ordinance approved by the Board in January that frees municipalities’ hands to set “pro rata.” We can impose restrictions on tourist apartments if they wish.

Why 43 neighborhoods? Because rental holiday homes have already taken over a large part of the market. Basically what the City Council did was to commission a study from the Espacio Común cooperative that looked at the weight of these properties in different parts of the municipality. As a result, it is concluded that tourist houses registered in the Andalusian Tourism Register (RTA) represent, on average, 4.53% of the housing stock in the city.

This is the average, of course. There are 43 neighborhoods where the percentage is much higher, exceeding 8 percent. The focus is on them and they will veto new leases.

“Beyond what is desired”. These 43 neighborhoods include the historic center, El Ejido, La Merced, Lagunillas, Capuchinos, El Molinillo, Baños del Carmen, Martiricos, Torre del Río and Pacífico. Technicians took into account issues such as accommodation availability, how the number of holiday rental licenses was evolving or demand for sheltered housing in their calculations.

The report concludes that the areas where the 8 percent red line has been exceeded, that is, where at least eight out of every hundred houses are dedicated to hosting tourists, are “beyond what is desired”. “We will not allow another house into these,” City Planning Council Member Carmen Casero explains categorically.

What about the rest of Malaga? In general, the 417 neighborhoods of the Municipality Information Center can be taken as a reference. This comprehensive list includes 43 residences where the tourist housing stock has already exceeded the red line of 8% and 46 residences that are not directly considered residential areas. However, there are another 328 neighborhoods where tourist apartments can be found, and the City Council decided at least today not to impose an outright veto on new permits.

This does not mean that any homeowner can rent his house to tourists. No. Months ago, based on the decision approved by the Board at the beginning of 2024, the City Council had already implemented an initial measure that imposes certain conditions on every apartment that wants to be allocated for vacation rental.

Independent access and services have been needed basically since February. Although there is no new opening ban in these 328 neighborhoods, the number of flats is limited due to the continuation of this obligation. Proof that the City Council is closely monitoring this compliance is that it has notified the Ministry of more than 1,500 cases of non-compliance with these requirements in order to revoke their permits.

Is the problem that serious? The numbers are meaningful. Today, according to Andalusian Junta records, it is estimated that there are more than 12,800 tourist apartments in Malaga. Data collected by Country It shows that in 2016 they did not reach 850, and there are sources showing that today this type of rental (VUT) represents almost 75% of all tourist accommodation offered in Malaga. Moreover, most of them are concentrated in very specific areas of the city. To be more precise, the neighborhoods of the Central District would account for 65%.

Moreover, the data on which the City Council relied to veto new tourist apartments in 43 neighborhoods leaves other interesting implications. The incidence in these areas is so high that it exceeds 8 percent of the residential park, but there are 32 other spots grouped in what the study calls “zone 2” in the municipality, ranging from 4.5 percent to 8 percent. %. For reference, the Bank of Spain’s latest housing report shows that the ratio of tourist homes to total housing across the country is 1.9%.

“This is not the end”. 13-O, with the threat of rent strikes and rising prices, Malaga City Council is already warning that it does not rule out continuing to take measures to stop the boom in tourist apartments. “This is not the end, it is the beginning,” Casero says. A few months ago, municipal technicians were already studying how to limit the conversion of commercial buildings into tourist homes and thus absorb the supply that could no longer be found in apartments that did not meet the requirements of the new regulations.

Now the City Council warns that it will closely monitor how the percentages in the second or third districts develop after the veto in the other 43 neighborhoods. And it warns: “New registrations will only be allowed until the 8% limit is reached.” For now, the first step will be to approve the change in PGOU at the general assembly.

Image | Oleg Tsegelnyk (Unsplash)

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