Barcelona continues to be a global and cosmopolitan city, attractive and well connected, according to the foreigners who live there. However, the buts are gaining ground: the cost of living in the city is rising for the first time. Barcelona is a good place to live, but it is getting more and more expensive. The price of housing, which debuts in Barcelona Global's International Talent Monitor, registers a record negative score: 2.6 points out of 7. Another aspect that this extensive biennial survey introduces is that of air quality : it does not come out well either and is placed on the black list, along with the slowness of the administration and taxes.
"The opinion of the foreigners who live in Barcelona is not so different from ours, they may even value the city more... but we have a serious problem and it is housing", acknowledges the president of the association, Maite barrier So much so that the price to acquire or rent a flat gets the worst grade in the entire report. "There is little supply and prices are rising", concludes Barrera, who rules out that the demand of these foreigners who come to settle in Barcelona is one of the main causes of the increase. "The problem is that no new work is being built - adds Mercè Conesa, director general of Barcelona Global - the time frame does not correspond to the majority profile of the respondents".
For more than ten years, 30% of the participants in the report have lived in the city and half say that they have no intention of leaving Barcelona, although they maintain that the decision depends on the conditions and job prospects In this regard, in addition to the rising cost of housing, which influences a negative perception of the evolution of the cost of living and the loss of purchasing power, it is worth noting that 74% of respondents say that they are not satisfied with their salaries: 51% of the participants earn up to 50,000 euros a year and 49% exceed this figure (19% earn up to 75,000 euros; 11%, up to 100,000, and 19% earn more than 150,000 euros per year).
The sixth edition of the Talent Monitor has been drawn up based on the answers, grouped in seven areas, from 1,008 respondents from 90 nationalities (64% European, 23% American and 9% Asian). 78% live in the city of Barcelona and 22% in the metropolitan area. 66% work in the city, 10% in managerial positions; 5% in startups, 3% are digital nomads and 6% are looking for work.
"Barcelona may be the best city in the south of Europe to live and work, but if we want to be an international pool, we have to do things", added Xavier Comerma, deputy general manager of Banc Sabadell and territorial director of Catalonia for the entity, who collaborates in making the report and has a specific office for foreign professionals in Barcelona that has more than 11,000 clients.
Among the challenges raised by the report is the need to promote new improvements in fiscal matters, a global strategy for affordable and social housing, the simplification and digitization of administrative procedures, promoting more affordable international schools and defending more sustainable practices in the city. Regarding future opportunities, the respondents point to the need to focus on the offer and cultural production, sustainability, the startup ecosystem and education and to boost the technology sector, biotechnology and research.
