The report, titled "The impact of tourist accommodations (VUTs) in the city of Madrid," highlights that regulatory tools implemented by administrations, such as the City Council's Plan Reside and modifications to regional decrees, have been ineffective. According to metrics from the Inside Airbnb platform, over 16,000 active tourist flats are registered in the capital. The Centro district is the most affected, with VUTs absorbing 10.36% of the main housing stock and 40.57% of non-primary residences.
The study underscores the high rate of irregularity in the sector, indicating that 91% of tourist flats lack mandatory legal documentation. Madrid City Council's statistics corroborate this, noting that 94.45% of inspected dwellings operated without the required urban planning permit. Furthermore, a structural shift in ownership is observed: 75.2% of the available offer is managed by 'multi-hosts,' investors or companies with multiple properties. A core group of 5,528 listings is dedicated to intensive use, entire property rentals, and short stays.
Despite restrictions, the actual commercial activity of these accommodations increased by 15.5% in the last year, and the volume of listings grew by 17.7% over the past three years. The Centro district leads with 7,128 active listings, but the phenomenon is expanding to areas like Tetuán (1,031), Salamanca (998), and Arganzuela (826), correlating with Metro lines and airport influence zones.
The report also warns of an adaptation strategy in response to stricter controls: the transfer of properties to the seasonal rental market or room rentals. The FRAVM denounces this as a fictitious conversion, as accommodations maintain high nightly prices, target a predominantly international audience, and are managed by professionals, thus evading the purpose of providing stable long-term rentals.
In light of this scenario, the FRAVM calls for urgent measures from the administrations: an urban planning enforcement plan with immediate closure of unlicensed flats; control of fraud in seasonal rentals by requiring explicit documentary justifications; oversight of the Plan RESIDE to prevent the conversion of residential buildings into hotel or vacation blocks; and an automated data-sharing system between the Madrid City Council, the Community of Madrid, and digital platforms to promptly delist irregular offers.
