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Meet Madrid’s anti-eviction warriors

Leah Pattem shares what it's like to be on the front line of an eviction.

Published: 24 January 2019 13:46 CET
Meet Madrid's anti-eviction warriors
All photos by Leah Pattem
I’d heard on the radio that there was going to be an eviction at 11 am, just a five-minute walk from where I live. I turned on TeleMadrid and their cameras were already there. I put on my coat, grabbed my camera and said to my other half, “look out for me on the TV”.

Rosa, who’d been living in her three-bedroom flat on Calle Argumosa for more than 20 years, was the latest victim of property speculation. Her building had recently been bought up by investors demanding an increase in rent from €400 per month to €1,700 – a distorted hike with one objective: eviction.

Lavapiés, the neighbourhood that both Rosa and I live in, has always been – and still is – a working-class barrio. Most residential buildings here were quickly erected centuries ago to house a flood of economic migrants from elsewhere in Spain but, today, these buildings host some of the smallest flats in the country.

In recent decades, Lavapiés has also become home to migrants from Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. Walk through the narrow, sloping streets of Lavapiés and see spice shops and Latin diners oscillating between old traditional Spanish shops – it’s a beautiful neighbourhood, if you ignore the crime, filth and inequality.

READ MORE: The real reason why this Madrid barrio is the world's 'coolest' neighbourhood

I squeezed through the TV cameras filming Rosa, who’d come to join the 100-strong protest outside her flat, and found Carlos, the leader of this tactical operation. He explained to me that he believes, for being an EU country, Spain is quite unique in its cruelty, evicting families with young children.

There appear to be no laws in Spain that protect tenants from investors buying up their rented property and throwing them out. These evictions – one occurs every eight minutes – are even more disturbing when you realise that around 3.5 million properties currently sit empty across Spain.

I spoke to several others in the crowd; they were all victims of evictions. Their trauma and misery had quickly turned to anger, which led them to join Stop Desahucios, where Carlos (Pictured above in green) and his warriors convert rage into activism.

Stood outside the evictee’s home in their well-known red and green vests, the activists chant, scream and envelop the building in spray-painted bed sheets. They make the whole city aware of what the landlord is doing, which is humiliating and bad for business.

Stop Desahucios activists pull back tenants from the edge of losing everything. Their success further empowers them all and, in the process, they gain a new warrior.

Chanting suddenly turned to cheering and Rosa was absorbed into a crowd of hugs.

“We’ve won! The landlords negotiated with Rosa and she’s been given one more month to stay. So, we’ll be back here again in a month.”

In this building alone, Rosa is the tenth eviction that Stop Desahucios have either stopped or delayed, with a further two prevented in the last week, making Calle Argumosa 11 an iconic example of what this unstoppable force of people can achieve.

BE A WARRIOR

If your contract expires, your landlord wants to increase your rent and you accept their increase, you’ve become part of the problem. Negotiate hard. This comes with undeniable risk: if you lose, you’re out and someone else will turn up willing to pay the price you walked away from, so stop them: negotiate to stay for what you believe is a fair price.

READ MORE: Renting property in Spain: Know your rights as a tenant

If you anticipate eviction for any reason (speculation, job loss, personal crisis, rent increase), get in touch with Stop Desahucios. By fighting your battle, we come one step closer to winning the war.

INFO

  • Stop Desahucios are Spain-wide. Find your city’s organisation here.
  • For Madrid, find your neighbourhood group here and get involved by attending one of their upcoming events listed in the calendar.
  • Follow PAH (Plataformas de Afectados por la Hipoteca) on Facebook and Twitter.

See you there.

Leah Pattem is the founder of Madrid No Frills, a blog that celebrates those overlooked corners of Madrid untouched by the gentrification and modernization that has transformed the city in recent decades.

To discover stories that reveal the grittier, real side of Spain's capital, follow her on the Madrid No Frills blog, on Facebook and in Instagram. 

IN PICS: Madrid's hostile anti-homeless architecture that you see everyday but don't even notice 

 

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LIFE IN SPAIN

EXPLAINED: How to buy a boat in Spain

Considering buying a boat to enjoy life to the fullest in Spain? Here's a breakdown of costs, legal requirements, financing options and useful tips to factor in before purchasing a bowrider, a day sailer, a yacht or any other 'barco'.

Published: 3 May 2024 12:18 CEST
EXPLAINED: How to buy a boat in Spain

Spain has around 8,000km of coastline, and access to the Mediterranean, Atlantic, and Bay of Biscay. For boat enthusiasts, you’re spoilt for choice in Spain.

But it’s not just as simple as picking out a boat, buying it and setting off into the ocean.

There are several decisions you’ll need to make first, rules to follow, administrative hoops to jump through, and then maintenance costs on top of that.

Types of boats

The first thing you’ll need to consider is the type of boat you want to buy.

Generally they can be split into two broad categories: motor boats and sailing boats.

Motor boats are the most popular type of boat sold and offer the greatest variety of options because they include pretty much everything from smaller more affordable power boats to huge luxury yachts.

As such, you could get a smaller motor boat, say for day trips of fishing on the coast, for as little as €10,000, whereas yachts, as you can imagine, can cost millions, depending on the size, power, design and quality of the boat.

According to several Spanish maritime sources, buying a used boat that you can live on in Spain can cost anywhere between €13,000 and €150,000.

Spanish website topbarcos.com has hundreds of boats listed for you to get an idea of what’s available in the second-hand market, as well as a page for new vessels.

Sailing boats are the more environmentally friendly option and require the most skill to sail, and include light sailboats, catamarans and trimarans. Again, prices vary from €5,000 to over a million, depending on the size, type of sail, material and quality of the boat.

Once you’ve decided on the type of boat you want and found one you’d like to buy, you’ll need to consider any potential legal requirements.

A woman sits next to a yacht in Puerto Banús luxury marina in Marbella. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP)

What are the legal requirements when buying a boat in Spain?

  • The correct nautical qualifications for the type and size of the boat you want to buy. There are different types of nautical licences to sail different boats in Spain, such as the PNB (Basic Navigation Skipper), the PER (Recreational Boats Skipper), the PY (Yacht Skipper) or the CY (Yacht Captain). Each has specific limitations in terms of length, power, distance from the coast and the type of sailing you can do.
  • Compulsory civil liability insurance that covers possible damages that you may cause to third parties with your boat.
  • Have all the necessary documentation for the boat, such as the certificate of seaworthiness and (essentially an MOT for the boat, showing that it’s in working order) and the navigation permit.
  • You’ll also need to pay the corresponding taxes on the boat purchase, such as VAT (21 percent), the special tax on certain means of transport (12 percent) or the transfer tax (4 or 6 percent, depending on the region).

READ ALSO: How do I get my boat licence in Spain

What other factors should you keep in mind before buying?

Think about what type of navigation you want to do, how often, with how many people and what your budget is. 

Don’t go with the first boat you see. Search and compare different models, brands, prices, conditions etc and don’t forget to keep an eye out for scams.

It’s a no-brainer but try the boat before you buy it, don’t just rely on photos or descriptions. Request a test ride to check the condition and navigational operation of the boat. 

If you do not have much experience or knowledge of nautical matters, it’s advisable to hire a professional to accompany you throughout the purchasing process. It could help you avoid possible legal, technical or administrative problems that arise.

They will also assist you with checking the condition of the boat’s interior: the carpentry, the engine, the electrical installation, the tanks, bilge, kitchen, bathroom and other compartments.

Here is a list of dozens of Spain-based brokers (as they’re called) or nautical companies that can assist you. 

Crucially, they will also be able to give you an informed assessment of what price you should be paying for the boat you’ve chosen. 

How can you pay for a boat?

Unless you have enough disposable income to pay for it cash, you probably want to know what kind of financing is available to you. 

There is the nautical mortgage (hipoteca náutica), which mimics the system for property mortgages, including the need for a down payment and embargo conditions in non-payment situations. 

Nautical credits (Créditos náuticos) also exist, which again are not too different from regular loans, including fewer notary costs than nautical mortgages and fixed interest rates. 

And lastly, nautical leasing is also an option, which is when a company acquires a boat and rents it to a customer for a certain period of time (normally between 4 and 15 years) and usually with an option to buy at the end of the contract.

Don’t forget the upcoming maintenance costs

If you manage all that and buy the boat, you’ll need to maintain the boat and pay costs to do so. These include:

The mooring: ie. the place where the boat is left when it is not in use. The price of mooring depends on the size of the boat and the location of the port. It can range from around €100 per month to several thousand.

However, be warned, in Spain these aren’t easy to come by. The Association of Industries, Commerce and Nautical Services (ADIN), estimates that Spain has only 107,894 moorings for 229,000 boats.

You’ll also need to pay for periodical technical checks that must be carried out on the boat from time to time to check its condition and operation. Again, the price depends on the type and size of the boat and the services contracted. It can vary from around €200 euros to several thousand.

Regularly cleaning the boat to avoid dirt, rust, algae, and parasites damaging the boat can also be quite costly. It can vary from as little as €50 for smaller boats to several hundred for bigger ones, and most experts recommend it should be done every 4-6 weeks.

READ ALSO: How to live on a boat in Spanish waters

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