Platform-Mediated Short-Term Rentals and Gentrification in Madrid
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Special issue article: Transnational gentrification Urban Studies 1–21 Ó Urban Studies Journal Limited 2020 Platform-mediated short-term Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions rentals and gentrification in Madrid DOI: 10.1177/0042098020918154 journals.sagepub.com/home/usj Alvaro Ardura Urquiaga Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, Spain In˜igo Lorente-Riverola Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, Spain Javier Ruiz Sanchez Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, Spain Abstract Gentrification demands updated frameworks to assess the impact of some major global trends on the local populations’ access to housing. Short-term accommodation using digital platforms in previously gentrified central urban areas is playing a significant role in outlining a new wave of ‘transnational gentrification’ in a number of global cities. Having undergone classical patterns of gentrification over the last two decades, the central district of Madrid and its surroundings are showing patterns of a new wave of gentrification in a context of economic crisis, planetary rent gaps, increasing global tourism and an increase in rental prices in central areas that may be related to the emergence of short-term rentals – making Madrid a relevant case for depicting transna- tional gentrification in the Southern European capitals. Based on empirical data, this work explores the holiday rental supply in Madrid over three years (2015–2018), verifying a strong association between the growth in tourist arrivals, the settlement of new residents from wealthy economic backgrounds and increasing rental prices. Since this process is accompanied by deregu- lation of local rental contracts and the growth of transnational Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), even in some of the most vulnerable areas located beyond the M-30 ring road, this wave of gentrification has the potential to produce displacement and substitution of residents. Keywords gentrification, holiday rentals, Madrid, touristification, urban segregation Corresponding author: Alvaro Ardura Urquiaga, Departamento de Urbanı´stica y Ordenacio´n del Territorio, Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, Avenida Juan de Herrera 4, Madrid 28040, Spain. 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Its most shorter term – to the city have drastically relevant characteristic is the rise in the cost changed the gentrification landscape of of living according to the newcomers’ stan- Madrid. Its urban amenities and cultural col- dards, which eventually may force lower- lections (acquired over a long history of income residents to find new areas in which transcontinental empire), coupled with its to live. In recent years, the middle class’s lower housing costs (relative to Northern growing access to tourism, the globalisation Europe) and easy accessibility for short-stay of real estate operations that take advantage tourists, have contributed to an influx of of planetary rent gaps and the emergence of new, mobile workers and visitors, who have new platforms providing access to short- partially displaced lower-income populations term accommodation in private residences from the city’s centre, including those of are broadening the spectrum of locations lower-status mobile workers from the Global and circumstances under which gentrifica- South. Madrid is an illustrative case of these tion can take place. Madrid is an example new processes of transnational gentrification and an appropriate case study for this because of its semi-peripheral status, where, phenomenon. like Lisbon (Sequera and Nofre, 2019) and For the last 40 years, the Centro district Barcelona (Arias Sans and Quaglieri, 2016; of Madrid has undergone significant trans- Cocola-Gant and Lo´ pez-Gay, 2020, this formations that have evinced classical gen- issue), housing stock has been transformed trification. After a period of decline (Leal, from longer-term stock to short-term tourist 2004), the reputation, activity, demography uses. From a visitor’s perspective, short-term and household size of some of its six residential accommodation can provide a Ardura Urquiaga et al. Table 1. Variations of population, number of households, and listing price for homes from 2006 to 2008, from 2009 to 2012, and from 2013 to 2017 in the Centro district and the city of Madrid. 2006–2008 2009–2012 2013–2017 D Population D Households D Household D Rental price D Population / % D Households D Household D Rental price D Population D Households D Household D Rental price /% /% size (ppl.) / % (e/m2)/% /% size (ppl.) / % (e/m2)/% /% /% size (ppl.) / % (e/m2)/% Palacio 21088 / 210 / 20.09 / – 2721 / 2109 / 20.05 / – 2398 / + 224/ 20.07 / + 4.80 / 24.39 % 20.09% 22.04% 23.04% 20.04% 21.18% 21.75% 2.04% 21.72% 37.80% Embajadores 21934 / + 95 / 20.1 / – 21.719 / + 145 / 20.1 / – 22.840 / + 44 / 20.13 / + 6.00 / (Lavapie´s) 23.75 % 0.44% 22.12% 23.42% 2.36% 22.19 25.98% 0.20% 23.07% 47.24% Cortes 2713 / 27/ 20.14 / – 2108 / + 40 / 20.04 / – 2367 / + 143 / 20.1 / + 6.10 / 26.15% 20.14% 23.21% 20.98% 1.43% 20.95% 23.37% 2.72% 22.50% 44.85% Justicia 2642 / + 54 / 20.1 / – 2125 / + 160 / 20.06 / – 2622 / + 73 / 20.09 / + 5.50 / (Chueca) 23.63% 0.69% 22.27% 20.73% 1.49% 21.43% 23.66% 0.88% 22.24% 37.16% Universidad 22383 / 2117 / 20.14 / – 2783 / + 132 / 20.07 / – 21.759 / + 96 / 20.11 / + 5.50 / (Malasan˜a) 26.74% 20.76% 23.13% 22.34% 2.24% 21.63% 25.42% 0.61% 22.73% 40.44% Sol 2688 / 224 / 20.17 / – 2266 / + 71 / 20.11 / – 2486 / 229 / 20.11 + 5.00 / 27.88% 20.65% 23.70% 23.27% 2.24% 22.56% 26.21% 20.76% 22.74% 38.17% District’s total 27448 / 29/ 20.12 / 20.89 avg / 23.722 / + 439 / 20.07 / 21.83 avg / 26.472 / + 551 / 20.11 + 5.48 avg / 25.42% 20.09% 22.64% 25.01% avg 22.30% 1.62% 21.61% 211.6% avg 24.40% 0.95% 22.69% + 37.80% Madrid’s + 40,322 / + 35,074 / 20.052 avg / + 0.32 avg / 231,347 / + 22,266 / 20.081 avg / 21.24 avg / 226,986 / 26,204 / 20.072 avg + 2.78 avg / total 1.32% 3.20% 20.93% avg + 2.60% avg 21.00% 1.94% 21.45% avg 210.28% avg 20.88% 2.23% 21.40% avg + 26.47% avg (exc. Centro) Sources: Municipal Population Register of Madrid, and Idealista.com (https://www.idealista.com/informes-precio-vivienda). 3 4 Urban Studies 00(0) more ‘authentic’ local experience than a transnational gentrification, planetary rent hotel, at an overall more affordable price gaps and recent updates to the wave model (Fu¨ ller and Michel, 2014; Novy, 2019). For theory. The subsequent two sections provide landlords, either renting complete apart- details of the methodology and the results of ments or monetising unused housing capac- our study of Madrid. Finally, we conclude ity can be a more profitable alternative to that transnational gentrification is a charac- the conventional real estate market (Lo´ pez teristic of fifth wave gentrification processes Garcı´a, 2018; Pe´ rez et al., 2015; Red2Red in Southern Europe. Consultores, 2017). This situation changes the classical landscape of gentrification, as contributors to this Special Issue argue. From classical to transnational The aim of this paper is to provide gentrification in Madrid empirical evidence of a new ‘transnational Madrid’s first gentrification processes can be gentrification’ (the arrival of wealthy traced back to the late 1970s and 1980s migrants who change the socio-economic (Figure 1). Chueca (in the Justicia adminis- character of certain areas of Madrid), neigh- trative quarter) evolved from being one of bourhood upgrading that correlates with the the main drug-dealing areas in the city to rapid increase since 2013 in platform- becoming the LGBT + neighbourhood of mediated, short-term rental supply and ris- Madrid, constituting the city’s first great ing rental costs. Madrid offers an empirical urban success story. Malasan˜a having been site for thinking about key concepts and the- the centre of ‘la Movida’ (Go¨ tte, 2014; ories of gentrification in light of contempo- Lechado and Garcı´ a, 2005),1 state-led regen- rary, global forces of real estate eration initiatives turned it (Universidad accumulation and population mobility. It quarter) into a so-called ‘hipster’ area challenges the prism of non-overlapping (Davidson, 2008). In order to renew obsolete waves of gentrification that scholars have urban infrastructure, improve public space, used to describe the phenomenon in the promote local commerce and revitalise a Anglo-American context (Aalbers, 2019; declining neighbourhood in the central dis- Hackworth and Smith, 2001; Lees et al., trict, which had lost 14.6% of its population 2008), broadening the empirical framework between 1986 and 1996 (Justo, 2011), the of transnational gentrification linked to new municipal government established a special forms of hybrid real estate and short-term Area de Rehabilitacio´n Preferente (ARP, or accommodation.