Eixample locals detect thousands of 'invisible evictions' from 'speculators'

Associations of neighbours from the Eixample neighborhood in Barcelona presented a report on Tuesday in which they say they have detected 232 "speculative" single-ownership properties.

With these "speculative processes", the associations claim that between 2016 and 2024 there have been 4,000 "invisible evictions" which they estimate have affected 10,000 residents.

Included in these are five senior citizens' homes and a day center that have been "expelled" from the district in the years analyzed.

To consider a property to be "speculative," they have taken into account whether there has been any activity that could be considered as such, including the purchase of an entire building or a single property intended for the commercialization of homes, new construction or major renovation promotions, contract cancellation processes, and eviction of residents or rental prices that exceed the average price index, among others.

This was explained by Jaume Artigues, president of the Dreta de l'Eixample residents' association explained, at the event on Tuesday.

The study found 131 such properties in the Dreta de l'Eixample area, 48 in the Esquerra de l'Eixample, 24 in Sagrada Família, 18 in Sant Antoni, and 11 in Fort Pienc.

Residents have also noted the average price of the property on offer is nearly 33% higher than compared to the city average.

The study also detected that 70% of the rental offer in the Eixample is short-term, which avoids having the price regulation applied to it. Meanwhile, 21% of the beds in the district are for tourist use.

They have recorded 97 judicial and 4,000 "invisible" evictions in the time period studied, with around 10,000 residents affected. However, this figure is a rough estimate, as it comes from a calculation by the neighborhood associations regarding the average number of homes in a building and the number of people living on average in each home.

In presenting the results, which are part of a study that is still underway, the president of the Dreta de l'Eixample residents' association denounced that current laws are "too weak" against speculation and claimed that "more decisive market intervention than has been done so far" is needed.