Fuerteventura tenants’ union calls for rent controls as housing costs rise
Rising rents and the use of homes for tourist accommodation are putting pressure on Fuerteventura residents, as the tenants’ union calls for action by councils and the Canary Islands Government.
Fuerteventura’s tenants’ union is calling for municipalities to be designated as stressed housing areas, as rising rents and the use of homes for tourist accommodation add to concerns about access to housing on the island.
The call comes as housing takes a prominent place in the national debate ahead of the general strike on 11 November and the general election on 29 November 2026. The island’s union wants local councils to request the designation and the Canary Islands Government, which has housing responsibilities, to take action.
Chus Vila, spokesperson for the Sindicato de Inquilinas de Fuerteventura (SIF), argues that even Puerto del Rosario, traditionally a residential market, is coming under pressure. The union also wants stricter regulation of holiday lets, the recovery of homes for long-term rental and a halt to evictions of vulnerable people.
Rental and house prices
Property portal Fotocasa puts the price of rent in Fuerteventura at €18.07 per square metre in October 2026, up from €17.58 a year earlier. Portal figures provide an indication of the market, although official rental data are difficult to obtain.
Across Las Palmas province, Idealista figures show rents rising from €8 per square metre in December 2016 to €14.60 in December 2025, an increase of approximately 82.5% over the period.
Buying has also become more expensive. Figures published by the Canary Islands Institute of Statistics, ISTAC, put the average appraised value of non-subsidised housing in the archipelago at €2,279.4 per square metre in the second quarter of 2026, up 14.2% on the same period in 2025. Nationally, the figure was €2,355 per square metre, an annual increase of 12.5%.
Valuation platform Tinsa recorded an 18.03% annual increase in the average price of completed new and existing homes in Las Palmas province in the third quarter of 2026, to €2,022 per square metre.
Tourist accommodation and residential housing
All six Fuerteventura municipalities had a higher proportion of tourist homes than the Spanish average, according to a Provivienda map based on National Statistics Institute data from May 2026. La Oliva had the island’s highest share, at 23.55% of recorded homes, followed by Antigua at 13.8% and Pájara at 11.46%. The figures were 5.46% in Tuineje, 4.45% in Betancuria and 2.11% in Puerto del Rosario, compared with a national average of 1.28%.
Provivienda’s affordable housing observatory cites research showing a close correlation between tourist rental prices and residential rents and house prices. Vila argues that excessive tourism pressure, including the conversion of formerly residential homes to tourist accommodation, has disrupted the balance on the island. The union also says some small landlords have substantially increased their asking rents.
The National Statistics Institute measures tourism intensity as average daily overnight stays in tourist accommodation relative to the resident population. Between June 2025 and May 2026, Pájara’s rate was 111 tourists per 100 residents, the third highest among Spanish municipalities, behind Mogán in Gran Canaria and Sant Llorenç des Cardassar in Mallorca.
What the union wants
Alongside the stressed-area designation, SIF wants holiday accommodation strictly regulated and residential areas reserved for residential use. The union also argues that publicly funded social housing should remain in public ownership and be returned to the public housing stock when households no longer need it.
Vila says the union operates horizontally, with decisions made by assembly and different members acting as spokespersons. It maintains close links with the tenants’ union in Tenerife, while Canary Islands organisations have chosen to remain independent of the national confederation, citing the islands’ particular circumstances.