Sóller: No Rental Apartment Under €1,100 — Who Stays on the Island?

Sóller: No Rental Apartment Under €1,100 — Who Stays on the Island?

Key question: How will Sóller keep its residents if affordable housing is taken by holidaymakers and seasonal landlords?

It is mid-December, the harbor of Port de Sóller lies quiet, the fishing boats rock gently, and on the plaça you can hear a few Mallorcans over coffee and a bocadillo. Still: anyone now looking for a long-term rental apartment often gropes in the dark. Listings start at €1,100, many offers begin at €2,800 — and affordable apartments are practically impossible to find.

Critical analysis: At first glance the problem seems simple: too few apartments, too many tourists. But the dynamics are more complex. Many owners consciously choose to offer short-term rentals — often because the return is significantly higher than with long-term leases. Platforms also ensure that demand from abroad is met quickly and easily. Equally relevant is local behaviour: islanders themselves sell or rent to tourists because the money is tempting.

One point missing from the public discourse is the role of the local labour market. Restaurants, hotels and small shops now compete with holiday rentals for the same housing. Staff can often only be found at a distance or not at all, because rents eat up wages. This is not an abstract problem — in the kitchen on the Passeig, in the boutique on Carrer Major, on construction sites you hear the same short formula: "We can’t find anyone who wants to stay."

What is often overlooked is the legal and administrative weak spot. Many tourist rentals are formally registered, others are not. Authority inspections are resource-intensive, and the transparency of booking platforms remains patchy. Without clearer data on available holiday apartments, targeted measures cannot be planned.

Everyday scene from Sóller: In the morning when the tram arrives from Palma, commuters get off, some with toolboxes, others with a backpack and a look that says: "If I stay here, the rent must be affordable." Small notes with phone numbers hang on front doors: rooms for €500 — often shared rooms, cramped, without privacy. Young chefs, waitresses and craftsmen cannot live like this permanently.

Concrete approaches, without falling into slogans: First, there needs to be a publicly accessible register of all tourist rentals at the municipal level so it can be checked which apartments are used short-term rather than long-term. Second, municipalities and the Balearic government should create incentives for long-term rentals: tax relief for owners who rent to essential workers or families, coupled with clear controls.

Third: accelerate municipal housing construction programmes — not luxury projects, but targeted, affordable apartments for tourism workers, care personnel and young families. Fourth: require larger businesses to provide housing or allowances for employees; this could be part of an operating licence or a condition for subsidies.

Fifth: tougher sanctions against illegal short-term rentals and digital cooperation with platforms for quick identification of violations. Sixth: support cooperatives and neighbourhood projects that temporarily secure vacant apartments and return them to the local housing market.

Who is responsible? Municipalities can make decisions relatively quickly — from occupancy registers to tax incentives. The Balearic government must create the framework and provide staff for inspections. Tourism platforms must cooperate, provide data and prevent abuse. And finally: owners and the local economy must take responsibility instead of chasing short-term profits.

Is something missing in the debates? Yes: a concrete plan for seasonal workers that goes beyond simple rental subsidies. Mobility to the mainland helps in the short term but does not solve the structural problem. What we need is political will and local practical examples — not abstract promises.

Conclusion: Sóller is not an isolated case, but the town shows how quickly housing becomes decoupled from the needs of residents. Anyone who wants to preserve the island as a permanent place to live must act now: create transparency, make long-term living attractive and oblige employers. If nothing is done, Sóller risks losing not only its residents but also its soul — those who open the bakeries in the morning and sit in the harbour in the evening are the ones who keep the island alive.