“Carlos has two careers. Sells cabin alarms. She has a master’s degree, speaks several languages and makes beds in a hotel. They no longer love each other, they can no longer stand each other. They don’t even touch each other with their feet. But every month they are needed to pay the rent.” This is how the lyrics begin mirrors of chaos, of the Biznaga group. The situation described by the Madrid group in this issue may seem exaggerated, but in the midst of the housing crisis, the story seems familiar. More than half of people who share an apartment in Spain (56%) do so because they cannot afford to live alone, according to a report from the Fotocasa portal.
A problem of access to rent and housing that affects many couples who are forced to make decisions that end up conditioning their relationship: moving together earlier than planned to cover expenses or because it is impossible to do it alone , sharing a house with more people or continuing to live under the same roof after a breakup. Other aspects of a crisis situation which is fueling mobilization in the streets of different cities in Spain. The first of these demonstrations for the right to housing will take place on Saturday October 13 in Madrid.
Olmo González, 43, left him a year ago with his partner, with whom he has two minor children. “We moved in together very quickly, more than 15 years ago, because a cheap apartment was available to rent. “They were very good years,” he tells elDiario.es. But the high price of housing does not allow him to move at the moment. He appreciates the good relationship between the two, but it’s obvious that it’s not a comfortable situation. “We need our space and separate our coexistence even if we remain friends.” It’s a mental health issue. The stagnation of the situation causes you to experience stress and even sleepless nights. “I don’t even want to imagine what the typical separation of middle-aged couples with children and a mortgage looks like, especially if there is no agreement,” he emphasizes. He plans to pay off his mortgage, but recognizes that he will need to find additional employment and significantly reduce his expenses. “Living alone literally means paying double for everything. »
We need our space and our separate coexistence even if we remain friends
Olmo Gonzalez (43)
— He has been living with his ex-partner and children for a year
After economic, health and job quality problems, housing is the problem that most affects the lives of Spaniards, according to the September CIS barometer. The right to housing is enshrined in article 47 of the Constitution. Does having to live with roommates until the age of 40 – when you wouldn’t want to – have decent accommodation? Is it satisfying to be forced to move in with your partner because you have no other choice? For Antonio Echaves, sociologist specializing in housing and emancipation, professor at the University of Seville, this is not the case. “The increase in the number of households made up of several people is a housing option imposed by the real estate market. For many, it’s the only way to have a roof over their heads,” he explains. He defines the situation as “a human right that has become a luxury”.
“Sharing space with an ex can be difficult. Doing it out of obligation can be psychological torture. Not being able to live alone in a big city means that many more people than we think have this problem,” explains the sociologist. In fact, as he reveals to elDiario.es, in his latest research he found a correlation between the difficulty of accessing housing and lifestyle. “Where we see cities less price stressed, we see fewer shared apartments and fewer couples apartments. On the other hand, in the most stressed countries, individual households are decreasing,” he explains.
Living alone allows a person to feel fulfilled, independent and self-reliant. “It’s legalized torture, they squeeze us at work and also where we live, and there are not many ways out,” says Olmo González.
Where we see cities less stressed by prices, we see fewer shared apartments and fewer apartments for couples. On the other hand, in the most stressed countries, single-person households are decreasing
Antonio Échaves
— Sociological researcher on housing and emancipation
Youth pays the price
Becoming independent in Spain is a problem. Spanish residents emancipate on average after the age of 30, according to the latest data from the Emancipation Observatory of the Spanish Youth Council (CJE). This is the highest figure in the last 20 years. The context is not a duality between those who can be independent and those who cannot; the majority are unable to support themselves exclusively. Only 15.9% of those under 25 live without help from their parents, according to the CJE. And to this we must add the difficulty of accessing work. Last August, our country once again topped the youth unemployment lists across Europe. 24.7% of those under 25 are unemployed.
It doesn’t help that rental prices have increased by an average of 30% over the past seven years. Indeed, in 2023, the population devoted 43% of their salary to paying rent, according to data collected by Fotocasa. And if people live in rooms it is because one in four people costs more than 400 euros and in Catalonia, Madrid, the Balearic Islands, Euskadi and Navarra, renting a room costs on average more than 450 euros, according to another study by the aforementioned rental company. platform. . The 944 euros per month on average that a young person pays to rent accommodation is the highest price since records existed, according to the CJE itself. Conclusion? Becoming independent is more difficult than ever.
Young people are the most frustrated in their aspiration to live alone. Julia Sánchez-Arévalo is forced to speed up time to live with her partner. This 25-year-old journalist lives in Madrid and says that due to “low wages, exorbitant rents and the price of housing, becoming independent is impossible.” Scientific literature supports his testimony. in the studio Residential emancipation and access of young people to rental in Spain: an aggravated problem and its territorial diversity (University of Seville, 2021), agree on the key issues for delaying the age of emancipation in Spain: job insecurity and the housing market.
“I have a stable partner and there is some hope of leaving, but we cannot ignore that the housing situation is what ultimately forces us to live together. At first, I would have lived alone. The current system accelerates a process that I would engage in much later in my relationship,” Julia reflects. “Sometimes we even consider losing our leisure time to have the money to pay for the apartment.”
I have a stable partner and there is some hope of leaving, but we cannot ignore that the housing situation is what ultimately forces us to live together. At first I would have lived alone
Julia Sánchez-Arévalo (25 years old)
Mara Martín (pseudonym) also had to favor sharing accommodation with her partner in Madrid, without wanting to at the time, in order to become independent. “At that time, I didn’t have any friends sharing an apartment and I couldn’t go there alone. There was a relationship crisis. Today we are still together, but I finally had to give in because I had no other choice,” he says. “Not being able to make the decision you would have liked for economic reasons has meaning for the couple.”
Mara currently admits to elDiario.es that they feel privileged to pay 500 euros in rent per month, but they have already been told that they are being evicted and that they must look for an alternative. “Now we are going through another crisis, because I cannot leave Madrid for personal reasons, but I also cannot pay the average rent,” he reveals. “My partner can go out. Maybe we find ourselves unable to complete a project together because of the cost of rent.
Madrid and Catalonia have half of the most expensive rooms in the entire country. But the rent problem goes beyond the two big cities. This is what happened to Pedro Pérez (pseudonym) when he moved to Malaga with his girlfriend, at the age of 19. They both decided to move together to avoid a long-distance relationship and, on Pérez’s side, to look for work in the city.
The average price of a rental house in Malaga is almost 1,600 euros per month. This forced them to look for a shared apartment with more people. They found a room for 200 euros per month and shared the expenses. Her parents paid her, Pedro paid himself. The situation did not last long. After six months they left him, but they had to live in the same room for another three months because there was no alternative. “It’s very difficult to limit space. We got along well, but living together in such a small place means we can’t take it anymore,” he says. Pedro was already suffering from depression. The situation only made him worse: ” Sharing a room kept me from dealing with the breakup before leaving that house,” he says.
I can’t leave Madrid for personal reasons, but I also can’t afford the average rent. My partner can go out. Maybe we find ourselves unable to complete a project together because of the cost of rent.
Mara Martín (pseudonym)
“It’s a right, not a luxury”
The real estate market has become more expensive in recent years. Today, houses are another financial asset and the state spends only 0.2% of its GDP on housing. According to Olmo González, “with the current government we see that it does not intend to touch the rentier sector. And this is not a red line to break up the government coalition, there will be a problem for a while.”
In Catalonia, prices have fallen by 5% in recent months in stressed areas like Barcelona following the application of this housing law rent control. “There is a lack of market monitoring and regulation policies,” notes Ehaves. He welcomes the drop in prices in Barcelona, but also calls for building social housing. “An adequate land tenure regime must be put in place for young people so that they do not lose their protection after 10 or 15 years to move to the private market,” he explains.
Housing is a human right that has become a luxury
Antonio Échaves
— sociologist from the University of Seville
The different actors in this article are clear: they will demonstrate in defense of the right to housing. “This subject comes up all the time with my friends, but I hear it in bars and on the street. There is no point in using savings techniques. It’s something structural and the fight must be collective,” argues Julia Sánchez-Arévalo about her help. Up to 39 groups demanded it on October 13 in Madrid, from Atocha, and in Barcelona from Plaça de Correus, both at 12 p.m. Mobilizations will also take place in Valencia on October 19, in the Canary Islands on October 20 and in Malaga on November 9. It’s not about fighting.
