Nearly three quarters (73%) of Malaga’s tourist flats violate rules

Experts in the industry have found that almost three-quarters of Malaga’s tourist flats do not adhere to the rules intended to regulate them.

Julian Molina and Pedro Marin Cots claim that at least 72% tourist accommodation (VUTs) in the city are not compliant with 2011 regulations set out by the Plan de Ordenacion Urbana. This puts residents’ quality of life and homes at risk. 

Francisco Pomares is the councillor responsible for housing in Malaga’s Ayuntamiento. He declined to confirm it.

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Molina, an economics professor at the University of Malaga, told La Opinion that this was a ‘conservative estimate’ with the percentage probably being higher in reality, especially given article 6.4.2 in the rules.

According to article 6.4.2, a property can only be used for a VUT when it has its own access and services.

Molina spoke about how many of these properties were located in residential neighborhoods where they did not follow the rules regarding the separate access points. 

Pomares stated, however that the Ayuntamiento’s approach in tackling VUTs involves requiring separate entries to prevent conflicts between residents.

‘Political ineffectiveness’ has however been cited by Marin, who is the author of the book ‘The complexity in housing’ and ex-director of the OMAU office, as the reason for the excess of VUTs in Malaga.

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Morin has criticised openly the Ayuntamiento in Malaga’s approach to the matter.

Pomares, on the other hand, believes that more drastic action would have taken if this situation was really illegal.

Residents’ quality of living is affected by the large number of properties that are being built in the city.

In Muelle Heredia-Soho ‘there are two tourists for every resident,’according to Molina, and in Centro Historico there are 920 inhabitants but over 3,000 VUTs and more than 300 restaurants. This has led to a 39.64% increase in the oversaturation of Centro Historico.

The Ayuntamiento, after consulting with the Junta announced that it would not grant any new VUT licences to properties which did not meet the PGOU regulations. 

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This declaration, which was issued in January 2012, has been criticised since then for its exemptions of VUTs already on the market that do not comply with regulations.

The state of Malaga’s tourist accommodation is still being criticized, but now the increase in property values has also contributed to the expulsion of residents from areas in high demand by tourists.

In this case, the interests of tourists are prioritised above those of residents.

The effects of the floods are not only felt in the city centre but also in the peripheral areas.

Experts say that Ayuntamiento’s recent decision to limit the number of new licenses will not be enough to fix years without control. 

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Pomares himself admitted that the growth of these properties could be seen as ‘out of control’ and that it has ended up causing imbalances across neighbourhoods and within the tourism system.

Malaga now faces a dilemma, where it must choose between two options. Either it allows the tourism sector grow or it takes a stance and implements more dramatic measures in order to give priority to its permanent residents.

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