A new journey begins and, with it, all types of citizens, with or without work, find themselves faced with the search for a rental in Madrid in the middle of what has become a kind of law of the jungle. Students from different regions of the country, workers who work in the capital or local residents in search of the dream of becoming independent, face a sea of offers to find the “least bad” and are willing to accept more and more demands, in addition to a casting with other candidates, to be able to have a home.
The Idealista portal published this week that renting a single room in the capital costs an average of 500 euros per person. It shares second place for the most expensive rentals in the country with Palma, while the first is Barcelona with around 565 euros per room.
In June of that same year, the market accumulated six consecutive months breaking records. And this is due to the very high demand in the capital and the limited supply to cover all candidates. From the same portal, they assure that for each housing advertisement, there are 41 contacts with very interested clients.
“When I arrived in Madrid, about seven years ago, I paid a little over 300 euros for a room in a student apartment. At the time, it seemed outrageous to me, but now I pay more than 500 euros for practically the same conditions: an apartment shared with two other people,” explains Sara, 25. Her life, like that of many others, began in Madrid while she was studying at university, in this case journalism, and over time she got a job that she says would be practically impossible for her to live with alone. “For our generation, getting a home is a goal that seems almost impossible,” she concludes.
As in your case, being able to access a rental has become an obstacle course for many. “Honestly, sometimes I don’t know if I’m applying for a job or if I’m finding a rental,” says Adrián, a 27-year-old engineer, ironically. His life also oscillates between searching on websites and real estate portals. “One day your contract expires, chaos returns, and so on,” he explains, reflecting the stress that so many people are subjected to in this situation.
“The current requirements are, in many cases, unaffordable. They ask us to prove our income for the last six months, to have a permanent contract, a guarantee and even to present the payroll of the people who are going to move into the apartment, which is significantly higher than the rental price,” he explains. In his case, he says that in addition to paying three months’ rent in advance, he also had to present his salary. “I understand that landlords want to guarantee payments, but in most cases it reaches excessive levels. In addition, I have couples of friends who both have a normal salary – between 1,100 and 1,300 euros – and even then they don’t have it easy,” he warns.
The average salary in Spain is just over 1,000 euros. “Since 2008, salaries have increased by 6.10% for young people. However, rents have increased by 40%, which closes access to housing for a significant part of the population,” the Youth Council points out in response to the problem that has been occurring for years throughout the country and particularly in Madrid.
“In the end, you may find something, but of course your savings capacity will be minimal, almost non-existent, and your life project with your partner or whoever will be delayed until an advanced age. That is why the average period of emancipation today exceeds 30 years,” concludes Adrián.
Pay-per-visit: “That’s just the way it is”
On the platform There was even talk on the social network about whether this fell within the scope of the law. “They announced that there were less than a hundred apartments for rent for less than €1,200 per month, of which only a third are intended for normal rental – the other two thirds are intended for tourist or temporary rental. She is not ashamed and she does not know her, €9.90 for a fucking visit,” Gina emphasizes.
In Madrid, this situation is not new. Last year on Tik Tok, a video of another user who had asked about an apartment went viral. The real estate agency assured him that it was available, but that he would have to deposit 30 euros to be able to visit it. “There are many of you, if you don’t pay it, someone else will, as you can see, are you interested or not?”
“I live in a vicious circle. Since I can’t afford to buy an apartment, I have to spend a lot of money on rent, but of course, this prevents me from saving and being able to buy one,” the influencer explains in another of her videos.
“Ultimately, the demand for rentals is huge, especially in a big city like Madrid, and setting a low price to be able to visit an apartment ensures that whoever goes to see it has a real interest in the house,” they explain to this newspaper from a small real estate agency in Hortaleza. “Somehow, the visits have to be filtered, maybe we put an apartment on the website and after a day we have dozens of requests to see it, there are not enough for everyone,” they continue.
The real estate agency clarifies that, although it is not as widespread a practice as others that are requested in all rentals, paying per visit is a practice that is found in real estate agencies and also in offers from individuals. “In the case of Barcelona, they asked for 10 euros, but in Madrid I have seen visits that exceeded 20. It is not a reservation, but some give priority to the client who pays first,” they emphasize. “It is fair or not fair, it is what it is,” they conclude.
The Provincial Court of Cádiz declared a similar case of charging for property visits as “abusive and null” in 2021 and stressed that “the visit of the house by the potential buyer is not linked to a commission”. The Housing Law itself reflects in its text that it is the owner who has “the obligation to assume the property management costs”. However, there are loopholes in the law that can be adapted to the owner’s benefits.
The search for profitable housing will continue to be a challenge immersed in a chaos where prices are increasingly high along with demand, the conditions for obtaining an apartment, the “tricks” that increase profit and, in the meantime, a whole generation for whom building a life project seems practically utopian.
