Balearic Islands lose 14,000 protected housing units

The Balearic Islands have lost nearly 14,000 protected housing units (VPO) since 2011. According to data from the Observatori de l’Habitatge, these properties have transitioned to the free market, allowing owners to sell them at significantly higher prices due to the initial public subsidies that lowered their purchase costs.

This loss represents a 56.36% decrease from the peak volume of 24,638 registered protected homes seen in 2011. The decline is attributed to the expiration of legal protection periods for properties built in the 1980s and 1990s. The situation is expected to persist, as nearly 10,000 additional homes are facing imminent expiration of their protected status.

Furthermore, the decline is exacerbated by a halt in the construction of new protected housing following the 2008 real estate crisis. While construction has shown signs of recovery in recent years, the volume of new units remains insufficient to compensate for the loss of existing protected stock.