The regulation of short-term rental housing in Valencia is generating increasing tension between tourism development, housing access, and neighborhood coexistence. A lawyer involved in several judicial processes against these municipal regulations has defended the sector's position against what he considers excessively restrictive and legally questionable regulations.
“"The weakness it is showing, in my opinion, is that the City Council is not acting in a manner subject to law. Many times it is trying to satisfy a very legitimate demand from some citizens of Valencia, but it must be subject to law... And what is happening is that judicial decisions are overturning each of the measures they are adopting."
This expert points out that municipal regulations do not respect the principles of proportionality and necessity, which has led to the loss of judicial appeals against regulations in areas such as Ciutat Vella, El Cabanyal, and the license moratorium. The new regulation, described by the City Council as the most restrictive in Spain, starts from the premise of establishing restrictions to make the activity impossible, instead of regulating it to make it viable.
The sector will examine the regulation once published in the Official Provincial Gazette to determine if it is subject to appeal. One of the problems detected is that the municipal diagnosis of tourist housing includes irregular dwellings, overestimating the actual number of legal ones. Furthermore, criticism is directed at the City Council for attempting to resolve urban planning indiscipline issues through planning, instead of inspecting and ordering cessations.
Regarding the impact on rental prices, the expert rejects that tourist housing is the main cause, arguing that the lack of supply is the underlying problem. He also highlights that the sector feels "demonized" and that dialogue was not sought with them during the processing of the regulation. To resolve tensions with neighbors, it is proposed to use mechanisms such as the Municipal Tourism Council and the Tourism and Leisure Observatory, which are currently not convened.
