95% of the holiday home rental properties for tourists in Malaga are run by 'small owners'

Almost 80% of the tourist rental properties on the Costa del Sol and across the province are in the hands of a single owner, who then uses that money to supplement family income, according to the latest data

Pilar Martínez

Malaga

Wednesday, 13 March 2024, 07:48

Almost all of Malaga's holiday rental homes are in the hands of 'small owners' - people who own just one or two properties - according to new data.

There are many myths surround the tourist accommodation sector and one of them is that this activity is mainly in the hands of large investment funds that speculate in these properties and that they are the promoters of a 'boom' that directly impacts rental prices.

However, about 95% of holiday homes in the province are owned by these small owners, data from the autonomous tax management body of Malaga city, Gestrisam, showed. The data, based on regional government statistics, also showed 80% of tourist rental properties in Malaga are in the hands of a single owner, who then uses that money to supplement family income.

This is the case for Antonio, who, having opted for early retirement, dedicated what was his first home in Malaga city to holiday rentals in a bid to earn some extra cash. He said: "The tourist route is safer than the traditional long-term rental market... here the risks of being squatted or not paying for months on end are minimal". He has been renting for many years, and although competition has increased, it continues to be the most reliable and profitable alternative, he added.

In Malaga city, there are 6,723 owners with current active tourist properties. Of these, 5,451 have only one property in this business, in addition to a further 983 who have two properties used for holiday rentals, that is, 14.6% of the total. Both figures show that 95.7% of the owners have a maximum of two properties, a far cry from the often-talked-about fixed picture that this business is in the hands of investment funds.

Malaga city tourism councillor Jacobo Florido said the data shows "they are small owners who have immersed themselves in this business to add some income to the domestic economy". "The majority of these owners are Malaga residents whose incomes remain and are invested in the city itself because they are often a support for their pensions or even their only source of income," he added.

According to the data, only 111 owners are operating more than four properties and only two of them have between 11 and 15 properties for holiday rentals. Another two manage between 15 and 20 properties to accommodate tourists, the data shows.

Costa del Sol

Andalusian association of holiday homes (AVVA-Pro) president Carlos Pérez-Lanzac said the model in Malaga city, where 80% of the owners of holiday rental properties only have one holiday home, is also consistent across the whole province and along the Costa del Sol.

"Even the new regulation of the Junta de Andalucía that regulates tourist homes, which came into force on the 22nd, is very focused on this particular type of owner, who is demanding a manager to help him in the face of increased competition and the new demands of both supply and demand," he said.

Pérez-Lanzac said this type of accommodation contributed 4.25 billion euros to the Andalusian economy in 2022. "The impact of this sector in Spain is 20.5 billion euros and Andalucía makes the largest national contribution with 20.7%," he added.

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