'I live in a major Spanish city - my first room was £170, now it's £723'

Tens of thousands of Spaniards are taking to the streets on Saturday (April 5) to demand safe, healthy and affordable housing. An estimated 30,000 have demonstrated in the major tourist city of Malaga. 

Under the slogan “Let’s put an end to the housing business”, the local organisation Málaga Para Vivir rallied the people of the Costa del Sol capital. They marched from Plaza de la Merced to the sound of Brazillian batucada drums. Now, one long-term Malaga resident has shared just how much his rent has increased in just the last decade.

In the Plaza de la Merced itself, where the protest began, eight out of 10 homes are rented out for short-term tourist accommodation. 

“In the city, there are 34,466 people registered as housing-seekers, while there are 7,496 tourist accommodations with 32,132 places available. Does anyone think this is sustainable?” a Málaga Para Vivir spokesperson asked.

 One protestor, Manuel, has lived in Málaga for the last decade. He works here as an engineer and has experienced first-hand the rent increase, which is pushing many locals out of Malaga and into surrounding towns. 

“My first rental price was 200 euros [£170] for a room. Now the normal price is around 500-600 euros [£426-510],” he said, The Olive Press reported.

“In the last five years, there’s been an increase of around 45% of the price of living here, and the salaries aren’t increasing to match this.”

Today, Manuel pays 850 euros to split a room with his partner in the city. 

“Now, in the centre of Málaga, you don’t see any local people. Only tourists and the businesses that focus on those tourists,” he said.

Málaga Para Vivir has organised to previous protests in the city, which brought together over 10,000 people. Held in June and November last year, demonstrators demanded action to fix the nationwide crisis. 

“We have to protest and encourage the institutions to do something for us because the housing crisis is getting worse every day,” said Manuel.

“This is just the beginning of the fight because we have to fight for our rights.”

Malaga is one of 40 cities participating in Saturday’s protests, including Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga and Palma de Mallorca. It could mark Spain's biggest coordinated rally for housing rights in recent memory.