MALAGA’S worsening housing crisis is forcing a growing number of residents to live in motorhomes and campervans due to ‘outrageous’ rent prices.
Makeshift motorhome settlements are emerging in Malaga’s suburbs including Teatinos, Sacaba and in the car park of the Martin Carpena sports centre.
Faced with rising rents, some residents have opted to live in vans and motorhomes, while an informal market has emerged renting out converted lorries for around €400 a month.
Reporting by Hoy Malaga has revealed the scale of the troubling situation.
One Malaga resident known under the pseudonym Maria told Hoy Malaga that she has been living in a campervan in Teatinos with her partner since January after being evicted from her rental property.
“When I went to look for another place, the prices were outrageous. I had no other option,” she explains.
Both she and her partner work and earn similar salaries of around €1,200 a month, but say renting in Malaga has become unaffordable.
‘There are tiny apartments for €750. More uncomfortable than my van,” she says.
‘If you pay €1,200 in rent, what’s left? You work to live, but you’re left with nothing,” she continues.
Alexander, a Ukrainian computer programmer, has also chosen to live in a motorhome in Teatinos.
He earns around €2,000 a month and says he has made the decision in order to save for a home.
His situation highlights that even young professionals are forced to live in motorhomes in order to get onto Malaga’s notoriously competitive property ladder.
In Sacaba about 100 people live in campervans and motorhomes on a former industrial plot.
The makeshift settlement has grown significantly over the past year after overnight campervan stays were banned in other parts of the city.
READ MORE: Malaga rents overtake Madrid to become Spain’s second most expensive province
Malaga’s town hall has responded to the growing motorhome settlement in Sacaba by announcing plans to acquire the plot and restrict vehicle access to the area.
As demand for mobile homes grows, a market for renting out old Lays crisp lorries for between €300 and €400 a month has emerged as residents desperately look for an affordable living situation.
The growing number of motorhome settlements comes as rents in Malaga continue to skyrocket.
Malaga has surpassed Madrid to become Spain’s second most expensive province for renters with only the Balearic Islands recording higher rents.
The average monthly rent in Malaga has increased by 12.7% over the past year reaching €1,232.
As rents continue to outpace salaries, many Malaga residents are being forced into life in campervans.
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