The worst offending cities for illegal tourist flats have been revealed by official government figures.
According to Spain’s Ministry of Housing, Sevilla has more illegal tourist apartments than any other city in Andalucia – outpacing tourism meccas like Marbella and Malaga.
In total, the City Council has revoked 2,289 applications for tourist rental licences in the Andalucian capital since July 1.
These are properties that applied for the mandatory registration number but were denied because they did not meet legal requirements. Platforms must now remove their listings.
To put the scale in perspective, Marbella, the second-worst offender, saw nearly 500 fewer rejections than Sevilla.
Malaga lost 1,471 licences. Other major Andalucian cities such as Granada, Cordoba and Cadiz trail far behind Sevilla’s numbers.
Andalucia leads Spain in illegal listings
Zooming out to the regional level, Andalucia is Spain’s hotspot for illegal tourist rentals, with the Ministry ordering the removal of 16,740 properties from online platforms.
That’s nearly double the figure in the Canary Islands (8,698), and well above Catalonia (7,729) and Valencia (7,499).
Nationwide, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said inspectors have flagged 53,000 irregular tourist flats and ordered them struck from the national register.
‘We want to bring order to the chaos of tourist rentals, which push up housing costs and reduce long-term supply,’ Sanchez said on Sunday during a visit to Malaga.
Pressure on local housing
For Sevilla, the numbers underline what residents have long felt: that unchecked tourist rentals are reshaping neighbourhoods and driving up housing costs.
The government’s crackdown signals a tougher stance – but whether it will cool the market in time for locals priced out of their own city remains to be seen.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
