After 30 Years: Retired Couple Leaves Mallorca – Rising Rents Push Them to the Mainland

When home becomes a financial burden

It doesn't happen with fanfare, but quietly and painfully: María and Paco, an older Spanish couple, pack their bags after almost three decades. Not because they want to, but because they must. The rent for their apartment in a neighborhood near the old town rose in a few years to the point where their joint pension barely covers electricity, water, and bread.

From 300 to 900 euros – and life becomes tighter

When they moved in in 1995, they paid only a fraction of what is asked today. Now the landlord demands much more; for the couple this is the final limit. With around 2,000 euros of pension income in total, after utilities there are hardly a few euros left. María says that fish or a glass of wine have become rare treats. Paco says he used to see the same vendors at the market in Santa Catalina – today the stalls are arranged differently, and prices have risen.

The problem is bigger than a single couple. Many locals have felt in recent months that living on Mallorca is unaffordable. Young families, single parents, self-employed people with small pensions: They all wonder whether a move to the mainland would be more sensible.

Why are they leaving?

The reasons are not just the rent. Higher cost of living, often lower pensions for the self-employed, and an overheated real estate market where houses and apartments are sold to investors and newcomers all contribute. For the couple, Alicante has become the alternative: life there costs less, their son has a house there – the option to breathe again.

The farewell is bitter. María and Paco leave behind a half-life of memories: a small workshop, neighbors they've known for years, and the habit of drinking a café con leche at the street corner at nine in the morning. They don't like giving that up, but reality forces them.

What does that mean for the island?

Such stories are piling up. When retirees and longtime residents move away, neighborhoods change. Shops, schools, and doctors' offices notice as demand falls. At the same time, vacation rentals and sales to buyers who see apartments as capital grow, not as homes. The question remains: How can Mallorca stay vibrant for the people born here or who have spent their entire lives here?

María and Paco haven't announced a big protest. They simply want an apartment they can afford with their pension. And a bit of dignity. In the end, that's nothing exotic – just a request for an affordable home.