Administrative obstacles close the way to one of the simplest ways to increase the housing stock: changing the use of the nearly 50,000 commercial premises that are empty in the largest Spanish cities, close to 20% of the total. According to a study carried out by the digital economic observatory Eixos and the consulting firm Deloitte for the APIs of Catalonia, only 4% of commercial premises can obtain a certificate of habitability, although almost 40% of those that currently exist have little opportunity as a location. commercial. For this reason, Joana Amat, vice president of Amat Immobiliaris, warned that in order for empty premises to become a housing alternative that helps alleviate the housing problem, it is necessary to modify the Technical Building Code and, in many cases, local urban planning regulations. .
The study analyzed the situation of 253,000 stores located in the twelve Spanish cities with more than 300,000 inhabitants, which represent close to 25% of the total number of commercial stores in the country. Of them, 20% have an excellent location and 36% a good location, while 16% (42,630 throughout Spain) have a bad, unfavorable or poor location. In Barcelona, 62% have an excellent or good location, while in other locations, with less tourist and commercial vitality in the neighborhoods, the percentages are worse, with 55% in Madrid, 41% in Valencia, 23% in Alicante or 22% in Bilbao.
This, the study recognizes, leads to an average of 20% of the premises being empty, with percentages reaching 35% in Bilbao.
Amat highlighted that there are more and more mayors who are trying to promote the change of use of empty premises into homes, and that the Col·legi d'Administradors de Finques have received requests for studies on the feasibility of doing so from many town councils. , among others that of Madrid.
The most appropriate transformation, Amat points out, is into an open-plan, loft-type home, and they could dedicate themselves to building accessible housing for people with reduced mobility, such as the elderly, or for young people. A study carried out by his company in Badalona estimated the cost of the adaptation works for a 100 m2 premises at 60,000 euros, for which a rent of 750 euros could be charged. “It is an operation that benefits the tenant, the owner, the urban fabric of the city, to which it restores life, the elderly, who gain social contact, and society as a whole, because it reduces spending on residences. ”.
Municipal regulations in some neighborhoods prevent housing on the ground floor, or regulate densities and therefore prevent the building from having another home. Iván Vaqué, CEO of Forcadell, recalled that the Technical Building Code also requires ventilation. with access to a patio or backyard. Amat assured that "this code is from 2006 and has been outdated in many aspects: for example, good mechanical ventilation is more efficient than a patio." Furthermore, he recalled, the Government can change it as soon as it considers it necessary with a simple decree law.
The number of empty premises has increased after the pandemic. “Occupancy has not yet returned to what it was before,” said David Nogué, director of Eixos, who recalled that after the covid 50% of the premises were empty and that only the efforts of the owners adjusting rents and By giving tenants shortcomings, it managed to accelerate its reopening.
Vaqué highlighted for his part that in many cases it is the economic demands of the owners that do not allow the premises to be rented. “Many businesses now cannot pay the rents for 2019,” he noted, while Amat recalled that for this reason many entrepreneurs choose a location based on the rent they can pay, not their location, “and that in the end makes their business not viable". Tenant turnover, therefore, is very high and reaches 25% “on the best streets, where businesses operate and there are many operators interested in paying a transfer to the merchant to be able to enter,” said Nogué.
Empty stores are generally in areas with little pedestrian traffic and are especially abundant in suburban cities. “If business does not work in a location, it is difficult to find alternative uses: companies do not usually want to locate offices there; The communities object to its use as storage rooms so that people outside the farm do not enter the building and micrologistics, which is sometimes seen as an alternative, does not demand space,” said Vaqué.
