Residential communities in Spain are now allowed to bar individual property owners from using their apartment as a holiday let under new legislation that came into force this month.

  • HobbitFoot @thelemmy.club
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    8 months ago

    Out of curiosity, are holiday rentals the major issue?

    They can be, especially in Europe where a lot of the hotspots for tourism are in our near the historic cores of cities. It gets made worse as historic ordinances limit construction of taller buildings which could accommodate increased tourism or there is rent control for housing but no equivalent limit for hotel stays.

    Overtourism is a documented problem which can drastically change the character of a place.

      • HobbitFoot @thelemmy.club
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        8 months ago

        I mentioned increased density as a reason why landowners may choose vacation rental over housing. The total habitable building supply can’t increase and it becomes more profitable to be a hotel than an apartment building.

        I feel a problem for Europe is that most of their tourism centers are centered in old cultural centers. For instance, Amsterdam became a major party city in its historic downtown. In contrast, American cities like Miami and Las Vegas were built from scratch to serve that function.