The residents of the property at number 84 Tarragona Street, in Barcelona, have reached an agreement with the property to extend for three more years 10 rental contracts that expired in 2026. The agreement will allow a dozen families to continue living in the building, owned by Gallardo Real Estate, a few meters from Sants station and Plaza de España. The property, which has 120 homes and is owned by the real estate company Gallardo SL, became a symbol. The agreement has been closed without, according to the union.
then governed by Barcelona en Comú and the PSC, granted licenses for tourist use in all the apartments, which triggered the progressive departure of neighbors and the beginning of the conflict. The situation dates back to the end of 2022, when the residents still in the building began to organize with the . After months of mobilizations and pressure, in May 2023 they managed to reverse 78 tourist licenses, which reduced the number of apartments intended for that use to 33. It was the first case in the city in which such a high volume of licenses in the same building was annulled, according to the union.
Since then, neighbors have reported the difficulties and uncertainty about their residential future. In February of this year, negotiations with the property were reactivated, after an action by the union at the company headquarters, which until then had refused to meet with those affected.
After months of conversations, the property has agreed to extend the 10 contracts that expired in 2026. “First we managed to stop 78 licenses and now we have managed to guarantee three more years of housing for ten families,” said Rebeca, spokesperson for the Sindicat d’Habitatge de l’Eixample. Although he recognizes that the problem is not resolved because the block still maintains tourist apartments, he considers that the agreement “gives stability to families and sets a precedent.”
It has become one of the most visible examples of the impact of tourist pressure on residential housing in Barcelona, in a context of scarcity of affordable rentals and growing tension between neighbors, owners and institutions.
