THE NUMBER of vacation apartments available across Spain has set a new record, with 340,424 now in existence for a total of 1.7 million beds.
That’s according to the latest data from the country’s National Statistics Institute (INE), and reported by Spanish daily El Pais.
The figures correspond to the month of August, and represent the highest ever number since records began in 2020.
The data set is, of course, distorted by the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. There was a marked fall in the number of apartments from 2020 to 2021, but in 2022 the number of Airb’n’b-style short-term rental options increased significantly, and rose from 2022 to 2023 by 9%.
All regions registered an increase apart from the Balearic Islands, which saw a tiny decrease of 0.2% according to El Pais.
The biggest rise was seen in the northern Asturias region, with a 15% increase from 2022 to 2023, followed by Galicia and Murcia, which saw 13%.
The INE figures also show which municipalities have the highest proportion of vacation apartments available for rent compared to the total pool of property.
Topping the list is Yaiza in Las Palmas, where 22% of homes are available for rent, followed by La Oliva, also in Las Palmas, with 21.5%.
In absolute terms, Madrid has the highest number of apartment rentals with 14,133 for a total of 51,265 beds, followed by Barcelona with 7,531 apartments and 36,122 beds, and then Valencia with 5,892 apartments with 23,310 beds.
