Catalan residents spend record 22.5% of income on rent

People living in Catalonia had to spend an average of 22.5% of their income on rent in 2023, a record high figure, the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce outlined in a press conference on Tuesday. 

Twenty years ago, a typical family had to allocate 14.6% of their income in order to rent a home, eight percentage points less than today, according to a report from the group. 

The Chamber of Commerce has demanded that the administrations unite to make a Catalonia-wide pact to combat what it labels a "serious problem" that puts the overall sustainability of the economic system at risk. 

Specifically, the body is calling for more private investment, increased public spending on social housing, and improved transport policy to link central and outlying areas of Catalonia. 

Structural challenges 

"If young people can't buy or rent, the future of the welfare state is at stake," said Joan Ramon Rovira, head of Economic Studies at the Barcelona Chamber. "It starts with housing."

The challenges are "structural," Rovira added, saying they cannot be solved with temporary measures. 

The report – 'Accessibility to housing in Catalonia' – does not make reference to the rent cap introduced by the Catalan government, which ended up being suspended by Spain's Constitutional Court, nor to the Spanish housing law passed last year.