canary islands housing crisis split homes flats

Canary Islands’ Housing Crisis Solved by Splitting Large Homes

Transforming Homes to Tackle the Housing Crisis

It is no secret that the housing stock in the Canary Islands fails to meet current demand. This means far more people are looking for a home than there are properties available. This housing crisis, compounded by the fact that fewer people are living together under one roof, has led to the search for new ways to create supply. A prominent trend emerging from this context is the increase in dividing large homes and converting them, after renovation, into two (or more) smaller flats. The goal of such work is to adapt a space into a more affordable option – with fewer square metres comes a lighter burden on the wallet – and to capitalise on the trend of shrinking household sizes, which now average just two residents per home in the Archipelago. Architect Ricardo García explains that “more and more projects of this type are being undertaken.”

Responding to a Changing Market

These projects respond to a housing demand that has fundamentally changed. On one hand, family units are now smaller, in most cases consisting of childless couples or with an average of 2.6 children, according to data from the National Statistics Institute (INE). This means they require less space and fewer bedrooms. On the other hand, the soaring cost of housing – with the price per square metre at levels not seen for over two decades, even before the property bubble – means that the smaller the surface area, the more affordable it becomes for the budgets of Canary Island residents.

The Rise of the Micro-Flat

Homes in the Archipelago are already among the smallest in the country, with an average of 96.4 square metres, compared to a Spanish average of 104 square metres, according to data from the Ministry of Transport. It is logical, therefore, to question the viability of these conversions for creating homes that are fit to live in. So, where are these subdivisions concentrated? According to Carlos Arbelo, CEO of CA Studio Architects, they are not so much in the most pressurised areas, like the capital cities or tourist hubs, but rather where large properties exist. García focuses on older buildings, particularly from the 1950s, whose architecture allows them to be divided relatively easily to create two homes where there was once only one.

In this sense, the Canary Islands have witnessed a shift in their housing model. Flats of 30 square metres – the smallest on the property market – are becoming increasingly common in the Archipelago. This was reflected in the latest 2021 Population and Housing Census report, published by the INE. In the last decade, this type of property has more than doubled in the Islands, rising from 4,719 in 2011 to 11,765 in 2021, an increase of 149.31%. Thus, the division of homes fits into a market dynamic marked by the reduction of the average size and the rise of increasingly compact residential solutions.

Legal Requirements and Practical Challenges

However, it is not enough to simply “split” a house physically: the new units must be able to function as independent dwellings. This is also stipulated in Decree Law 1/2024 on urgent housing measures. The regulation posits that increasing supply will lower prices and therefore proposes the division of existing homes as a relief for the limited housing stock. Notarial and land registry practice reminds us that share allocations and surface areas must be redistributed, and the new units must have an exit to a public road or a common area of the building. In other words, they must become spaces with minimum living conditions. Therefore, “the more entrances and façades the original house has, the easier this subdivision becomes,” the architect emphasises.

One of these minimum requirements for habitability, which is “often overlooked,” explains Arbelo, is the existence of “patios with specific measurements that allow the flat to be ventilated.” Most of these new homes are subsequently destined for the rental market, and the CEO details that the investment often comes from “foreigners looking to profit from the sale of the property.”

The Cost of Conversion

On the other hand, the budget for such a transformation can vary greatly depending on the scale of the works. García points to the increased cost of building materials, now exacerbated by the war in Iran and the blockade on oil imports, which can drive up the price of the project. Even so, “the price range is very wide,” he assures, and will depend on factors such as the location and the amount of space that can be utilised.

Source

Scroll to Top