Barcelona, Spain, to ban short-term rentals

June 30 (UPI) -- Barcelona, Spain, will ban short-term rentals by 2028, prompted by concerns that locals are being pushed out of the housing markets by companies such as Airbnb and Booking.com. city officials have announced.

"In Barcelona, ​​we prioritize housing," Barcelona Mayor Jaume Collboni said in a video posted to Facebook.

"We want to guarantee the right to live in our city and deal effectively with the housing crisis we are suffering. That is why today we have announced important measures: No tourist apartment in Barcelona."

Collboni added that there are now over 10,101 apartments registered as rentals for tourists, and the move will prompt a return of property to the open market, giving locals a chance to own their own home.

"With these structural measures, we will expand the residential area and the supply of affordable housing," he said, calling it "essential" to curb the unaffordable price hikes and prevent any Barcelona residents from having to leave the city where they want to live.

The city will stop issuing new licenses to properties in November 2028 and not renew existing permits. That means that from 2029 no homes will have permission to be rented as accommodations for tourists.

"This measure will not change the situation from one day to the next," Collboni added. "These problems take time. But with this measure, we are marking a turning point."

Despite the economic benefit that tourism has provided, Collboni argued it has driven up rental costs by 68% in the last decade, and driven down the available supply of apartments and other homes. Data show that housing costs have jumped by 38% over the same period.

Barcelona's short-term rental numbers have remained stagnant for years, though, according to data from Barcelona City Hall, hovering at about 10,000 since 2014, even as housing prices have continued to increase.

Rent prices in Barcelona increased 14 percent over the past year, and are the highest among Spanish cities.

The city's data show around 850,000 homes exist in Barcelona, making the 10,000 or so short-term rentals a fraction of the total housing market.

Cities in other European countries, including London, Dublin, Amsterdam, and Paris have placed some sort of restriction on short-term rentals, including restricting the number of nights an apartment can be rented.