Palma, Mallorca

Housing - the most pressing issue that the government faces. | Teresa Ayuga

Andrew EdePalma20/03/2024 09:42
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At present, 4,366 people are on the waiting list to rent a home from the Balearic government's Ibavi housing agency. The number is down from 4,679 a year ago, either because people have now been housed or have been removed from the list for various reasons.

Rents paid to Ibavi are no more than 30% of net incomes. The properties are much less expensive than those on the open market.

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Ibavi currently has 2,362 properties to rent, while a further 424 are being built. The number is clearly insufficient and symptomatic of the housing problems in Mallorca and the Balearics.

The housing ministry has various schemes to try and address these problems. It remains to be seen how effective these might be. One is the 'limited-price housing' to be created from conversion of commercial premises and in other ways.

Another is the build to rent programme. Public land will be ceded for the building of social housing. But it requires town halls to give up municipal land and there is little indication as yet as to how amenable town halls will be.