Thousands protest housing crisis in Madrid

Thousands of people marched through Spain's capital, Madrid, on Sunday, protesting soaring rents, high home prices and a growing housing shortage.

Organizers said more than 100,000 people joined the march, while authorities put the figure at about 23,000.

The demonstration, organized by the Madrid Tenants' Union and backed by Spain's two main trade unions, comes despite recent action by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's government to tackle the housing crisis.

"Housing measures, although some are moving in the right direction, are advancing at a snail's pace, while the housing crisis is escalating rapidly," Unai Sordo, secretary general of the CCOO union, said.

Housing shortage worsening

Spain's central bank says that between 2021 and 2025, the number of new households grew faster than the number of new homes built, leading to a shortage of about 700,000 homes.

"More and more people are being forced into overcrowded conditions, having to live in shared rooms or even with other families," a spokesman for the tenants' union, Fernando de los Santos, told the AFP news agency.

According to the EU statistics agency Eurostat, housing costs rose nearly 13% year-on-year in 2025.

To help counter this, the government last month approved a new plan worth 7 billion euros ($8.23 billion) to build more public housing over the next four years. It also includes assistance for young renters and homebuyers.

A separate decree to freeze rent increases did not pass the legislature.

Anger over holiday rentals

Another key demand from protesters is a tougher government crackdown on tourist rentals.

Holiday homes have surged in city centers, outpacing hotel growth for years during Spain's tourism boom, but locals say the spread of holiday rentals is pushing up rents and property prices.

Authorities are now tightening rules as pressure mounts to protect housing for residents.

Edited by: Jenipher Camino Gonzalez