Local residents in Lanzarote are being forced to live in their vehicles due to a housing shortage caused by a proliferation of holiday rental flats. The shortage and high cost of rented housing have increased the number of people living in vans in car parks around the island.

According to a recent survey, housing has become the main issue of concern for residents on the holiday island. Over the last four years, since January 2021, the average sale price has increased by a whopping 40%, from €1,878 to the current €2,655 per square metre. As a result, many people, from workers to small business owners, are unable to afford rent or mortgages on their meagre wages.

One person struggling to find suitable accommodation is a 40-year-old small business owner who was born in England but grew up in Lanzarote.

The man, who prefers to remain anonymous, recently started his own party and events company while also earning a little extra money as a DJ.

He earns €1,600 per month, which is not enough to allow him to rent his own place.

“There’s nothing for less than 1,200 euros,” he told the media website diariodejerez.es

Initially, he spent an entire month in a holiday home, paying €70 per day. Then he bought a van and adapted it himself.

It has a kitchen, shower, a 140-litre water tank, and 400-watt solar panels. He has been living in a car park for six months.

Alongside this van, he has another newer and larger one he uses for work.

“The island is terrible, and I don’t think it’s fair that everything goes towards holiday rentals,” he said.

According to the tourist rental survey conducted by the Canary Islands Institute of Statistics, Lanzarote currently has 36,384 tourist places in holiday rentals.

Four years ago, in January 2021, there were 11,000 fewer.

In 2024, the island broke its historical record for tourist arrivals with just over 3.2 million visitors.

Meanwhile, the last social housing development built on its territory dates back to 1994.