MARBELLA’s far right has lambasted the local administration over rules that give newcomers the same access to housing as ‘those who built this town.’
Representatives of Spain’s hard-right party VOX said housing policies should serve ‘local residents and families who want to build their life project in Marbella,’ adding that the local government – led by the right-wing PP – had ‘turned its back’ on longtime residents.
It comes as property prices continue to soar nationwide, amid a worsening housing crisis that has locked young people and vulnerable groups out of Spain’s property market for years.
“The PP’s housing policy needs explanations, real planning, and a social approach that stops turning its back on those who have sustained Marbella for generations,” a VOX spokesperson said in a statement.
“Housing policies must serve local residents and families who want to build their life plans in Marbella and, even more so, those who have demonstrated a genuine and long-standing connection to the municipality,” they added.
In Spain, local administrations can provide residents with access to a particular type of homes collectively known as ‘protected’ housing (vivienda protegida).
These homes are sold or rented below market rates to people who meet specific income and social criteria.
A subtype within this category, known as ‘officially protected homes’ (VPOs), comes with even stricter price caps and usage rules.
Such housing is intended to ensure access to affordable homes for residents who might otherwise be priced out of the market, particularly young people and low- to middle-income families.
VOX argues that some of these protected homes are being allocated to newcomers rather than long-standing Marbella residents, which the party says undermines the original social purpose of the scheme.
That criticism forms the basis of its attack on the PP-led council, which it accuses of failing to prioritise families with deep roots in the municipality.
VOX also claimed that in the past 17 years only around 200 VPO homes have been built in Marbella — a figure it described as ‘clearly insufficient’ given the town’s population growth and housing pressure.
The party added that the recent announcement of 1,000 new protected homes came after the governing team rejected a €4 million VOX budget amendment for 2026 aimed specifically at housing for young people.
VOX has also highlighted a recent development of 84 protected homes in San Pedro Alcantara, where it says the town hall contributed just €10,000 per property while taking in more than €2 million overall in government funds.
It insists this model drives up final sale prices and makes it harder for many families to secure mortgages, while leaving long-time local residents feeling shut out of housing in the town their families helped build.
As of December 2023, Marbella had around 150,000 registered residents — roughly 50,000 of whom were foreign-born, according to Spain’s National Institute of Statistics (INE).
That means about one in three people living in Marbella was born abroad or is registered as a foreign national.
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