Almost 430,000 second residence homes throughout the Catalan territory. The figure represents only 11% of the 3.9 million homes in all of Catalonia, but their unequal concentration turns some coastal and mountain towns into empty towns for most of the year.
The high demand for second homes has an impact on rental prices. To guarantee access to housing for residents, the Catalan government this April expanded the number of municipalities considered to be stressed areas and, therefore, measures would be applied to regulate prices. This new list includes many of these municipalities that have high percentages of second homes.
Among the towns most pressured by the second residence are some of the Catalan Pyrenees such as La Vall de Boí, Llívia, Camprodón or Alp, where they represent more than 30% of the entire housing stock. The same thing happens on the Costa Brava: in Cadaqués, Llançà, l’Escala, Begur and Palafrugell the percentage of second homes ranges between 15 and 30%.
It is no coincidence that many of these localities with a high presence of second homes appear on the list of stressed areas. Since last March 16, the Generalitat approved the limitation of rental prices in places where the shortage of housing at an affordable price makes it difficult to access or even maintain a home.
After a month in force, this April 2024 it expanded the list by 131 more localities, to include other stressed municipalities such as those on the Costa Brava, les Terres de l’Ebre and some localities in the Catalan Pyrenees – such as Bellver de Cerdanya, Puigcerdà , La Seu d’Urgell or Sort—. All of them areas with a high demand for second homes. With the current expansion, the stressed areas cover 271 municipalities where more than seven million people live, 90% of the entire Catalan population.
Beyond the Costa Brava and the Pyrenees, Barcelona city also has a high percentage of second homes. With more than 71,891 apartments, the Catalan capital is the town that has the most homes of this type in absolute terms. But the percentage of the municipality’s total properties is lower than the Catalan average, which is 9%.
