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“I think the summary is fear…Fear because they feel totally unprotected.” Yoana Garrofé, owner of the Yoalquilo real estate company, thus describes the concern she receives these days from homeowners on the Island. In an interview in La Voz de Fuerteventura, she analyzes the reasons that have led to the current situation, the uncertainty generated with the housing decrees that fell last Friday in Congress, the call for general elections and the possibility that at least the first of the decrees – although with modifications – will finally be approved by the Permanent Deputation. Uncertainty generates fear and fear has direct consequences, also for those looking for a home, he warns. In Fuerteventura there is a contraction in the rental supply to move to the sales market, and the properties that remain do so with requirements that are increasingly difficult to meet, he emphasizes. From rent to sale In Fuerteventura, there are already large tenants who have sent a burofax to their tenants to inform them that they will not renew the leases when they expire, with the intention of putting the homes up for sale. This is the case of a businessman who prefers to remain anonymous and who has rents that range between 300 and 400 euros; including a 4-bedroom home near the sea. “We have never raised prices, we had never worried because we thought it was better to have good tenants and payers,” he explains. Despite maintaining prices clearly below the market, he regrets that people call him an abuser for the mere fact of owning several homes. “We are tired of people looking at us with envy and speaking badly about us,” he laments. A situation that, he considers, could get worse, which is why he even considers the possibility of leaving Fuerteventura. It is not the only case that reflects the uncertainty of the sector. Garrofé explains that on the same day of the interview, this Monday, he had planned a meeting with another owner – very flexible – who must decide between renting or selling. His decision, he says, is conditioned by doubts about the measures that the Government may approve. Others keep their homes for rent, but restrict the profiles they accept. The person in charge of Yoalquilo says that some have told her of their intention to rent only to civil servants, considering that their job stability offers greater guarantees against a possible situation of vulnerability. Remember the case of an owner who until now accepted people without a permanent contract when their track record and references offered confidence. Now, he explains, he is afraid to take a risk that he feels he cannot afford. There are also homes that remain unrented due to the demands of their owners. “The owner is usually afraid because of a bad experience,” he says. In his opinion, evaluating a candidate requires looking beyond his employment contract. The fact of having stayed ten years in the same home also provides information about your behavior as a tenant. Who bears the cost of vulnerability Much of the concern shown by owners is related to the possible protection against evictions until 2030 contemplated in the housing decree. Garrofé rejects the fact that small property owners are the ones who bear the inability of different governments in decades to promote public housing and guarantee the protection of vulnerable people. For this reason, it demands that the measures include guarantees for the owner and that the Administration assume the cost when a vulnerable person cannot pay. “If I have a mortgage, I have an obligation to pay the bank,” he remembers. Even if an eviction is stopped, he adds, that obligation continues. And those who do not have a mortgage also face expenses that they covered with their rent. “Because what cannot be is that I take responsibility individually and that I bear the economic consequences of another person,” he maintains. In the end, it is the owner who may incur vulnerability. Among the different solutions, it also proposes insurance that guarantees collection or that the Government pays the rent when there is a proven situation of vulnerability. He also demands more information. “There is a lack of information,” he summarizes when talking about the speed with which measures are announced and the doubts they generate between owners and tenants. Rentals that require sharing housing Insecurity coexists with prices that exceed the income of many families. A person who earns 1,500 euros and must pay 1,000 in rent has only 500 to cover the rest of his expenses, he explains. That pressure is changing coexistence. Families that previously occupied separate homes are now looking for larger houses to share the rent between several generations. They live tighter but can better afford the monthly payment. In Fuerteventura, large apartments that cancel out the living room to create more rooms are also beginning to proliferate. A lodging modality, without a doubt, more lucrative. Given the situation he observes every day, Garrofé considers market intervention necessary in order to stop prices that reduce the quality of life and consumption capacity. The increase in income, he explains, also has an impact on commerce and restaurants, for example, since the money allocated to housing stops being spent on other businesses and reduces the circular economy. Regarding the large forks, introduce a nuance. With whom it works, there are landlords who maintain lower rents than small holders and accept different profiles of tenants with greater flexibility. For this reason, it is considered that the number of homes a person owns does not alone explain their rental conditions nor determine how it affects the market. Holiday housing and its profitability Garrofé points out the lack of control over holiday housing as one of the factors that have reduced the residential supply and made rentals more expensive, especially in the Canary Islands and islands such as Fuerteventura. He criticizes that the search for profit has led to offering inadequate spaces and demands to protect those who live and work on the island. But he warns that “not all vacation homes are as lucrative as people think.” Location, supplies, cleanliness, brokerage fees and maintenance determine performance. As he explains, some owners entered that market without calculating expenses or checking if their home could obtain the income that they heard about in other cases. After trying, some return to residential rentals. “Many people have gone through the vacation trend without having previously done a study,” he says. In his opinion, the crisis also responds to population growth and insufficient housing creation, which is why it demands a response that also covers these causes. “Who buys those homes?” The departure of properties from rental to sale opens another concern for the professional. “Who buys these homes? For what purpose do they buy them?” Garrofé asks. Although a greater supply could favor a drop in prices, it warns of the difference between a resident who needs financing and an investor with the capacity to close the operation immediately. “An individual will not be able to compete with an investor because the investor buys it from you today for tomorrow,” he explains. He remembers a home he showed to five potential buyers in just two hours. Among them were investors and young majoreros. According to him, he conveyed to the sellers his concern about facilitating access for these young people and they understood his approach, finally opting for the majoreros. Garrofé links this difficulty of access with the loss of identity of the island. It defends the arrival of people from other places and multiculturalism, but considers that residents’ access to housing must be protected. “What is the residence has to be protected also to take care of the idiosyncrasy,” he maintains, on an Island “where it is difficult to find a majorero.” Also listen to the small owner The person in charge of Yoalquilo calls for mobilizing the homes that remain unused and listening to those who know the problem from different positions. To people looking for a home, tenants, professionals and owners. “I would love for them to take into account the voice of the people when making decisions,” he says. Their request expressly includes those who have only one home and depend on that income to pay a mortgage or supplement their income. He considers that meetings focused on large owners, which are common, leave out an important part of reality. “Ask that one, not just the one who is 40 and 50,” he claims. Garrofé is also very critical of the Government’s management of SAREB, with numerous properties in Fuerteventura, most of them unfinished. The entity, majority owned by the Executive, neither sells nor auctions the homes that could contribute to alleviating a good part of the shortage that exists. “The Government is the one that has to get its act together and, just as you issue a decree for one thing, you issue a decree for another and mobilize. But you can’t have that standing there with the lack of housing that exists and we do nothing and look the other way. That doesn’t help. Looking the other way doesn’t help anyone,” he concludes. Rest in Peace, Maricarmen After writing the article, we learned of the death of Maricarmen Abascal, the 87-year-old woman who was evicted on September 23, and who has become a symbol of protest over the housing situation. The Tenants’ Union called for a general strike, agreed with the main union organizations and CCOO and UGT, for next November 11, just fifteen days before the general elections scheduled for November 29.
Originally reported by www.lavozdefuerteventura.com, rewritten by the Fuerteventura Times AI Editorial Desk.
