Evicted 87-year-old Spanish pensioner to return home after deal

The brief

Context

Spain's long-running housing affordability crisis erupted into mass protest after the eviction last Wednesday of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal from the Madrid flat she had occupied for 70 years. The wheelchair-using pensioner was removed on a stretcher after the real estate firm owning the flat raised her rent by 275 percent to 2,650 euros a month, according to supporters. Tens of thousands protested nationwide and about 100 tents were pitched in Madrid's Puerta del Sol. Her lawyer said on Monday a deal with the owners will let her return home, as Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's government prepares a housing package for cabinet.

Key facts

• Maricarmen Abascal, 87, was evicted last Wednesday from the Madrid apartment where she had lived for 70 years; she uses a wheelchair and was removed on a stretcher.
• Supporters say the real estate firm owning her flat raised the monthly rent by 275 percent to 2,650 euros ($3,000); she had always paid her rent.
• Lawyer Beatriz Duro said on Monday a deal was reached with the owners, with rent "similar to what she had been paying", allowing Abascal to return to her Retiro flat after hospital treatment for exhaustion.
• Around 100 tents have been set up in Madrid's Puerta del Sol square since Saturday night; tens of thousands have protested across Spain.
• About 2,000 protesters gathered in Barcelona on Monday night during a visit by Sanchez, demanding a rent freeze, indefinite contracts and anti-eviction measures.
• Average rental price in Spain has almost doubled over the past decade, reaching 15.10 euros per square metre in August (Idealista).
• Purchase prices stand at 2,355 euros per square metre, up more than 50 percent in a decade, according to official figures.
• The Bank of Spain estimates the country of around 50 million people is short of 700,000 homes, based on the demand-construction gap.

Timeline

1. Last WednesdayMaricarmen Abascal, 87, is evicted from her Madrid apartment of 70 years, removed on a stretcher.
2. Saturday night onwardsProtesters set up roughly 100 tents in Madrid's Puerta del Sol; tens of thousands protest across Spain.
3. Sunday nightProtesters including 29-year-old Carlota camp overnight in Sol demanding people be put before investment funds.
4. MondayLawyer Beatriz Duro announces a deal with the owners; around 2,000 protest in Barcelona during Sanchez's visit.
5. TuesdaySanchez government to present a new housing package to cabinet.
6. Earlier this yearA similar housing bill was defeated in parliament.

Who has a stake

• Maricarmen Abascal — The 87-year-old evictee, hospitalised for exhaustion, who can return to her Retiro flat at a rent similar to before if the deal is signed.
• Beatriz Duro (Abascal's lawyer) — Negotiated the deal, credits "social mobilisation" and hopes it changes the paradigm on housing.
• The real estate firm owning the apartment — Raised rent 275 percent to 2,650 euros; showed "goodwill" in settling, per Duro.
• Pedro Sanchez's Socialist government — Under popular pressure to pass a housing package; lacks a parliamentary majority.
• Sumar and other parties — Far-left junior coalition partner and other parties in talks needed to pass a housing law.
• Catalan Tenants' Union — Spokeswoman Carme Arcarazo rejects a "sham decree", demands rent freeze, indefinite contracts, anti-eviction rules.
• Spanish tenants and young renters — Face nearly doubled rents; teacher Laura Requena, 32, says independence without flat-sharing is impossible.

Why it matters

One eviction has turned a chronic affordability problem into Spain's central political issue, showing how a single human story can force policy movement where statistics did not. The outcome — a negotiated return at the old rent — was credited to street mobilisation rather than law, underlining the weakness of tenant protections. With the coalition short of a majority and a similar bill already defeated, whether protest translates into durable legislation remains open.