Spain’s Airbnb craze sparks row after 27,000 businesses are turned into flats: ‘Guiris go home’ stickers appear on tourist lets in Valencia – but local in Malaga says ‘thanks to them we all have jobs’

FIGURES released this week show that more than 800 shops, bars and other local businesses in Malaga have been turned into homes over the past three years.

Specifically, some 839 premises in the Costa del Sol city have been changed since 2021, according to property portal Idealista, citing data from the national land registry.

Out of these, 327 were shops or bars, while 198 were warehouses and storage rooms, and 88 were offices.

Meanwhile, a total of 60 hotels were transformed into multiple flats, as were two religious buildings.

READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: What’s really behind the anti-tourism graffiti in Spain? Locals give their verdict

And it’s no surprise, according to the report, which states that turning a business into a home can triple the property’s value.

In Malaga, housing is worth 86% more than a commercial premises and 80% more than an office, so the change of use is more than profitable.

However the latest figures have sparked fury among a portion of locals online, who took to social media to vent their frustration.

One wrote on Instagram: “You’re at the point of extinction, but you are fighters!”

Another said: “Malaga is following in the footsteps of Magaluf,” while one added: “What a shame that the city is not for Malagueños.”

However one local barked back, writing: “Thanks to them (guiris) almost all my friends and I have jobs, just like half of Malaga… in Torremolinos I was earning €1,800 thanks to their tips.”

The account page responded sarcastically: “Thanks to the guiris handouts… what kind people!”

Across Spain over the past three years, there were 27,700 conversions of businesses into homes.

Madrid and Barcelona saw the most, with 3,625 and 2,233 respectively, followed by Pontevedra (1,624), Valencia (1,255), Las Palmas (1,074), Sevilla (1,035) and Burgos (963).

According to a concerning report by the Bank of Spain, the rapid surge in holiday lets is contributing to the lack of housing available for everyday Spaniards and residents.

The data report said some 600,000 homes need to be built by 2025 to make up for the property deficit in the country, despite the fact that there are almost four million empty or unoccupied homes.

It comes as anti-tourism sentiment continues to grow across the country.

Photos shared by the Guirisgohome Instagram account show stickers bearing the page’s name being plastered outside tourist flats in Valencia.

A caption under the post reads: “Valencia… stop turning businesses into Airbnbs!”