Running header: A QUICK WAY TO SOLVE HOMELESSNESS IN BARCELONA 1

A Quick Way to Solve Homelessness in Barcelona:

An Analysis of the Current Efforts in Ending Homelessness in Spain
Focusing on the Region of Catalunya and Specifically Barcelona

Anu Atoyebi
Iberian Architecture and Urbanism: An Introduction
Professor David Goodman
20 May 2020
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Abstract:
This paper uses quantitative as well as qualitative data to analyze the issues surrounding the homeless
population of Barcelona, the broader region of Catalunya and the entirety of Spain. There has been a continuous
increase in the homeless population of the formerly listed areas despite national and local efforts in producing an
end. The plans and strategies made available to the public all aim to end homelessness in the differing regions of
Spain by 2020, 2021 latest. Unfortunately, this has not been the case considering many of the plans lack the
funding necessary to implement and complete them. This paper offers a framework proposed and researched
internationally as a method for forging a new path to solve homelessness. The framework includes three stages:
Early Prevention, Emergency Assistance, and Accommodation & Support. This paper suggests a focus on the
first and third stages of the framework as well as offers specific methods within each to address the particular
situation in Barcelona given the data researched. It is important to remember that the methods applied to
Barcelona may not apply to every location as causes and factors affecting homelessness differ from population
to population. The goal of this paper is not to point fingers, but to raise awareness for the issue in Barcelona,
offer helpful solutions applied internationally to assist the government and people of Spain in reducing the flow
through its homeless pipeline, and proposing ways in which the pipeline can be improved.

Having made trips to some of Spain’s most famous cities and observed the environment, one may find
the number of homeless persons in cities both large and small quite concerning. Looking further into the matter
reveals that this is not the eye and mind playing an unfortunate trick or game on us. Homeless shelters in Spain
received an average of 18,001 people each day during the 2018. This number is actually a 9.5% increase since
2016. The current “homeless” population of Spain is estimated to be between 23,000 and 35,000 (Spanish
National Statistics Institute, INE). Everyone who cares for the country as well as the wellbeing of humans
should be very concerned with the issue at hand and how the national and local governments have decided to
take on the problem. Focusing mainly on Catalunya and even more specifically on Barcelona, the goal of this
paper is to draw attention to the issue at hand and to offer possible resolutions to the policies and plans working
to put an end homelessness in Spain.
Every year the European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless, or
FEANTSA for short, compiles statistics from nations in the European Union and the United Kingdom to
produce the European Housing Exclusion Index. It is essentially a quantitative analysis and ranking of the
housing crisis in each EU country using the following 5 factors: housing cost overburden, outstanding
payments, overcrowding, inability to keep the home warm, and severe housing deprivation. The following chart
is a compilation of the data collected for Spain by FEANSTA and the Abbe Pierre Foundation on these factors.
For further clarification housing cost overburden is considered spending 40% or more of income on housing
costs.
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The decision to focus on Barcelona as the case study of this paper was made after having seen the
dissipation of the nation's homeless population. The following chart presents the disproportionate span of
Spain’s homeless population across all the autonomous communities. The top five Autonomous Communities
with the largest percentage in population are: Catalunya at 21.3%, Madrid at 15.4%, Andalucia at 13.1%, Pais
Vasco at 8.7%, and Galicia at 8.3% (INEbase, 2013). Catalunya unfortunately has the lead in this area of social
issues and it is by quite the sizable distance. Barcelona had made Catalunya the economic center of Spain and it
is rather unbefitting that the region would take such a large hit after the financial crisis. There has been a 25%
increase in Barcelona’s homeless population and an 86% total increase in the region of Catalunya. The number
of homeless sleeping rough - sleeping in the streets or parks as opposed to in centers - was 956 persons in May
of 2018. The number in May of 2019 increased to 1,195 persons (Barcelona City Council & Xarxa d'Atencio a
Persones Sense Llar Barcelona - XAPSLL for short, 2018-2019).
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Homelessness can be defined in many different ways by the situation or individuals experiencing the
situation. For the purpose of this paper two definitions shall be used/addressed. The first being the situation of
an individual or family which has no stable, permanent, acceptable housing, or without the immediate prospect,
means and ability necessary to acquire the aforementioned housing. The second definition to be cognizant of for
the scope of this paper is homelessness as the result of systemic or societal barriers, a lack of affordable and
acceptable housing, the individual or family’s financial, mental, cognitive, behavioral or physical challenges,
and/ or racism and discrimination. In addressing homelessness, it is essential to take the time to understand that
the greater problem is not solely individual and relational factors where personal circumstances - house fires,
sudden job loss, mental health and addiction, domestic abuse and/or violence, etc. - leads to homelessness. The
causes of homelessness also include structural factors and systems failures. Structural factors such as poverty,
discrimination, lack of affordable housing, and the effect of past rule are issues that impact opportunities,
environments, and outcomes for individuals and families. Systems failures occur where systems of support are
inadequately delivered. Barriers to accessing public systems (healthcare, social services, and legal support) as
well as constant failure in transitioning from publicly funded institutions (child welfare, hospitals, and
corrections) are signs of systemic failure (HomelessHub, n.d.).
The profile of the homeless population in Catalunya - and more specifically Barcelona - is a result of
the economic issues most of Spain and this region in particular have been dealing with. The global financial
crisis of 2007-2008 was the point of departure of Spain’s own Great Depression which lasted from 2008 to
2014. In 2012 Spain became a participant in the European sovereign debt crisis when the country became unable
to bail out its financial sector and applied for a €100 billion rescue package from the European Stability
Mechanism, or ESM. The main cause of this economic downturn was the housing bubble burst in addition to the
unsustainably high GDP growth rate. The ballooning tax revenues from the booming property investment and
construction sectors kept the Spanish government's revenue in surplus, despite strong increases in expenditure,
until 2007 (Hildago,2012). The government supported these developments by slacking supervision of the
financial sector which allowed the real estate bubble to further grow due to the shady handling of documentation
in banks at the time. The results of the crisis were devastating for Spain, including a strong economic downturn,
a severe increase in unemployment, and bankruptcies of major companies (Russia Today, 2013).
Economic issues such as job loss, home eviction and not being able to afford rent and/or support
services are the main drivers on the profile of Barcelona and the greater Catalan area. Increasing unemployment
and falling income paired with increasing rent/ property prices do not make for a very good house search in the
city. The profile of homeless people being observed in Barcelona in particular consists of the working poor -
people with unstable jobs who cannot afford rent and are forced to live in shelters - and invisible evictees -
people who sleep in squats, share rooms, or go elsewhere after being evicted. The percentage of people who
used Barcelona’s homeless services who had a job in 2012 was 4.10%. The percentage had increased to 12.76%
in 2016 (FEANSTA, 2019). There is also a theory that youth homelessness may be hidden, as young people do
not wish to be considered homeless and are reluctant to access traditional homeless services. In Barcelona in
2019, 18% of homeless people were between 18 and 30 years old (XAPSLL, 2019). Amongst these factors,
other causes in the city of Barcelona include citizenship status, discrimination, family situations and personal
challenge. FEANSTA suspects that the proportion of migrants in Spain’s homeless population may have
decreased slightly in 2013, since undocumented migrants were excluded from some legal social provisions and
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more than 1 million migrants returned to their countries of origin. In spite of this decrease, numerous asylum
seekers who have been denied asylum become homeless in Spain. Additionally, “regarding the labor market,
being a foreigner, not knowing the language well, and not being able to validate the academic qualifications of
the country of origin, lead applicants to exclusive, temporary, precarious and low-skilled jobs that lead these
people to what is already known as poor workers , or what is the same, poor workers who are forced to live in
homeless shelters, substandard housing, occupied housing or any of the categories of residential exclusion
defined by ETHOS” (Sant Joan de Déu Serveis Socials - Barcelona).
The current policies addressing homelessness would appear to be unsuccessful given the information
stated previously in this essay. In fact one might think the issue does not seem to be of concern to the national or
local governments and municipalities. In April 2014, the Parliament approved the first Spanish National
Homelessness Strategy and the Ministry is beginning to work with different NGOs to define and develop this
Strategy. The Spanish Government adopted the first “Comprehensive National Homelessness Strategy 2015-
2020” on 6 November 2015 – but it is still not being implemented due to the lack of funding. There have also
been strategic developments at the level of different autonomous regions. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria created a
strategy to fight homelessness from 2017-2021. The Basque Country has developed a strategy for homeless
people 2018-2021. Zaragoza and Barcelona each have their own strategies to fight against homelessness as well.
The Catalan Strategy is written and was to begin implementation in 2016 lasting until 2020, having said that no
one is doing anything with it, so it is as if the plan basically does not exist (FEANSTA, 2018). “Catalonia has
produced a document known as the “Model for Attention to Homeless People 2010”. It sets out the legal
framework for tackling homelessness within the region. This is seen by stakeholders as a prerequisite for a
strategy with clear targets, responsible stakeholders, set budgets, and so on. But even now, no budget and no
concrete implementation have been set up (FEANTSA, 2019).”
The Catalan government (Generalitat de Catalunya) is also supposedly working on a new plan to fight
homelessness in Catalunya, but it’s not available yet. HOGAR SI also runs Housing First projects in Malaga,
Barcelona, Madrid, A Coruna, Avilés, Donosti (RAIS Euskadi), Zaragoza, Valencia, Alicante, Granada,
Cordoba, Sevilla, Mostoles, Coslada, Alcobendas. The City Council in Barcelona, together with the XAPSLL,
have designed a homelessness combat plan that will try to respond to all aspects of homelessness in Barcelona.
An official pilot experience on Housing First was launched by Barcelona’s City Council, with 50 housing units,
involving an impact study and qualitative research. The project is to last for 3 years and is generating a lot of
expectation in public and private homelessness service providers all around the country (FEANSTA, 2019).
Many are hoping the research found at the end of the study will lead to concrete solutions that can be replicated
in other cities experiencing this urban social issue.
While these may seem like many positive steps toward preventing and ending homelessness in the
country, there are a number of negative developments that may be having larger effects than the positive
developments. Cuts have been made to both welfare and homeless services, presenting a major challenge in the
current context. In several Autonomous Communities, subsistence benefits to people in vulnerable situations or
experiencing social exclusion have decreased and/or have become more difficult to access due to tougher
eligibility requirements. Along with this the former government approved a bill on public security designed to
control and punish behaviour on the street, including placing sanctions which target the homeless. These
policies state that individuals who damage public property or lead to its vaguely-defined “degradation” could be
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fined up to €600. This could lead to homeless people being fined for sleeping on a park bench or sitting on a
street corner when not able to stay in the few homeless centers that may be available to them. (FEANSTA,
2019). The national Government has also refused several local, regional and national measures proposed by
other public authority levels and political parties to avoid evictions and its consequences. Meanwhile, the
national Spanish strategy to fight homelessness has no budget and the plan is not being implemented yet.
Furthermore, there is still no progress on the horizon in terms of increasing the affordable proportion of social
housing within the housing stock of the country (FEANSTA, 2019). In fact, there are threats to cut back on the
already minimal social benefits, and housing remains to be defined as a personal problem, with no official
support. Local authorities can offer a housing subsidy, but even that usually does not exceed 10 euros/month.
The Arrels Foundation is a private foundation that assists the most vulnerable homeless people that live
on the streets of Barcelona. Its objective is assisting the homeless in getting to an autonomous as possible stage
of life by covering basic needs and providing housing and social and health attention. They also raise social
awareness about poverty problems in the environment and report unfair situations to administrations and to the
citizens of Barcelona. In early 2019, the foundation put together a guide on homelessness featuring advice from
five individuals who were homeless at the time and the following map for where to find public and private
resources directly accessible to homeless people in Barcelona.

This brochure was not only a helpful tool for individuals and families who recently became homeless,
but also served as an education on the lack of resources and the obstacles the homeless face. Some practical tips
from the five individuals included: “The shelter is usually full, with a waiting list of days or weeks. If you have
a phone and leave your number, they will call you”; “Look for a safe place. Waiting rooms in hospitals, stations
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and the airport air an option. Remember that these are private spaces with rules that will determine what
businesses allow you to stay there”; “If you bathe or wash your clothes in a [public] fountain, you can be
punished”; and “Be ready to walk, because the resources are far from one another.” The map above shows the
reality of the final statement. There are few resources for sleeping and they are dispersed. A person that goes to
a shelter may stay there while they find another resource that will provide stability but, at the moment, it is very
difficult for the person to face real estate prices. If you live on the street and you want to access a shelter, you
have to wait up to two or three months and, consequently, you must be prepared to live on the street during that
time. There are different shower services, but they are inadequate because the person cannot shower as many
times as needed during the week. There are also no spaces to store your belongings when you live on the street
or have been kicked out of housing. There are no adequate laundry services that people can access directly.
There are also other basic services not covered such as how should one deal with an aggressor? How can you
get a medical check-up if you can only go to an emergency room? What alternatives are available to you if you
do not feel comfortable at a shelter? Overall, planning one's life when living on the street is difficult because
they must spend a lot of time moving from one place to another just to eat, shower and/or sleep (Arrels
Fundacio, 2019).
Needless to say, the current plans and strategies somewhat implemented or not at all implemented are
in need of reform. It is fortunate that much research has been done around the world. HomelessHub.ca is a
group and website which aims to educate people in Canada of their own problems surrounding homelessness.
Now while each country and city has differing factors affecting their homelessness populations and prevention,
the framework which this group presents has also proven successful in other cities because it recognizes each
city's differences and places emphasis on educating the general population. The following paragraphs shall
break down the 3 steps in the framework.
Without further ado, Prevention is the first step in the framework. This is not the larger homelessness
prevention this paper has been discussing thus far, but is more concerning early prevention. The goals of early
prevention methods are to stop individuals and families from becoming homeless in the first place. A few
methods are early intervention through family mediation and evictions prevention through support in
landlord/tenant legislation, rent supplements, emergency funds, legal advice and representation.
Following prevention is Emergency Assistance. This the area most focused on in plans combating
homelessness. It consists of providing emergency support such as shelter, food and day programs while people
are homeless. Early intervention plays a role by shelter diversion and case management. Systems Prevention
includes diminishing barriers to accessing support, such as transportation, disability, linguistics, cost, citizenship
requirements, etc.
Last but definitely not least of all is Accommodation and Support. This final step is providing housing
and ongoing support as a means of moving people out of homelessness. The methods behind this step are
creating housing stability by assisting transitioners in obtaining and/or retaining housing, enhancing social
inclusion, etc.; as well as structural prevention methods by increasing the amount of affordable housing
available to transitioners, reforming anti-discrimination policy, practice, and training, etc.
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As stated previously in this essay, The causes of homelessness are not simply individual and relational
factors, but there are also broader population-based structural factors as well as the failure of many public
institutions to protect people from homelessness. This analysis paired with research from Australia, Wales,
England, Germany, the United States and Canada suggests that plans and strategies to end homelessness must
include broad reform addressing the drivers of homelessness with individual intervention as a supplement. Since
mass homelessness emerged in the mid-1980s, governments and municipalities have largely used emergency
services to respond to people’s immediate needs (HomelessHub, n.d.). However this has proven to be the wrong
handling of the problem. More emphasis needs to be placed on keeping people out of homelessness rather than
managing the homeless population.
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Why should the focus of homelessness prevention be on early prevention and later accommodation as
opposed to emergency assistance? Because “we can never truly end homelessness until we are able to address
how to stop the flow – the pipeline – into homelessness (HomelessHub, n.d.).” Emergency assistance is like
applying a unicorn bandaid to a gash left by a samurai's sword. It is a short term solution to a massive problem
whereas it makes far more sense to invest in providing enough acceptable and affordable housing and
implementing policies which keep people in their homes when on the verge of becoming homeless or after
having experienced the situation. Early efforts in homelessness prevention are cost-effective as they can reduce
the public cost of addressing homelessness. Research in Toronto, Canada shows preventative measures reducing
the cost of addressing the issue from $56,000 per person yearly to $14,924. Meaning if 40,000 people were
prevented from becoming homeless through earlier taken measures the government would save 600 million
Canadian dollars. Ending homelessness is not only of financial benefit to countries and the world, but stable
housing is also a human right. The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights - or
ICESCR - states that all signed states/nations must “recognize the right of everyone to an adequate standard of
living from himself and his family, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and to the continuous
improvement of living conditions”.
In the case of Barcelona the best way to address early homelessess prevention is by investing in
evitions prevention. The renting crisis has unfortunately taken over most of the city with areas which were once
somewhat accessible and affordable, such as the Raval, the Gothic Quarter and Barceloneta, being gentrified by
services like Airbnb. When an author for the New Yorker visited Barcelona and met with a researcher at Rovira
i Virgili University, they wrote the following: “It’s known more for its façade than its collection.” A terrace café
caters to students, tourists, and affluent residents who have recently been drawn to the area. …The true
landmark of the contemporary Raval, however, is a billboard that looms over the plaza. Placed there by an
activist group, it features an illustration of a “not welcome” mat laid over a puddle of blood, and announces, in
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Catalan, a list of aggressors to the neighborhood: real-estate speculators, tourist mobs, and Airbnb.” Another
professor from Rovira i Virgili University stated that Airbnb helped Spanish families struggling with
unemployment so the city became lax in its rules about short-term vacation rentals. In following years the
number of licenses in Barcelona had quadrupled. ““Tourism is the face of capitalism in Barcelona,” Cusó [an
activist living in the Gothic Quarter] said, with resentment. In the building where he lived, two of the nine
apartments were short-term rentals, including one whose owner rented it to half a dozen foreign students for six
months at a time—at four times the rent he could collect on the ordinary housing market” (Rebecca Mead,
2019).
Eviction Prevention methods are early intervention and housing stability programs and plans which
keep individuals and families at imminent risk of eviction in their homes. By clearly outlining the rights and
responsibilities of tenants and landlords in landlord-tenant law and legislation, educating both on their rights -
which will help tenants avoid conditions which result in eviction/ wrongful eviction - and setting up rent
controls and supplements along with legal and crisis supports Barcelona can offer help to those facing possible
eviction and home loss. Barcelona has been taking action against rent increases using new laws and legislation.
In the first 3 months of 2019, the region of Catalunya saw an increase of 7.6% in rent costs - a 0.9% rise from
the final quarter of 2018 according to the INE. New housing rents increased from 2018 to 2019 by almost 12% -
a higher average than for the rest of Spain which was 6.8%. Having recognized this increase the government
passed a housing decree to address the issue. Housing activists accused the government of “cheating" and
claimed that the new legislation would fail to address the actual crisis. Lucía Delgado, a spokesperson for the
People Affected by Mortgages (PAH), a platform founded by the anti-eviction activist and current Barcelona
mayor Ada Colau, told the CalanNews the decree “...doesn’t tackle abusive renting prices. The prices of social
housing will increase.” However thanks to grassroots group protests, in mid-May of 2019 the government
passed a new law capping rental prices in areas with a lack of affordable housing, preventing tenants from
possible future eviction and decreasing flow into the pipeline of homelessness since the city does not have the
means to transition the homeless into tenants in short periods of time. The law is to be applied where unstable
rental markets occur, so in areas where there is a “sustained increase in the price of rents at a cost for families
[and individuals] that is clearly above the average in Catalonia” (CatalanNews, 2019). The law also applies to
areas with disproportionate balances between population increase and housing availability. The renting cost in
the designated areas can only pass the reference index of rental prices (to be determined by the government per
area) by 10%, 15% for areas with exceptional views and special features, and 20% for new and refurbished
apartments in their first 5 years on the market.
Along with property speculation fueling the renting crisis, Barcelona is having a major housing crisis in
the sense that there simply is not enough acceptable housing to place people into permanently, leaving
individuals and families in the emergency assistance and transitioning stages for far longer than acceptable. A
viable solution to this issue is inclusionary housing. Inclusionary housing programs are “local policies that tap
the economic gains from rising real estate values to create affordable housing for lower income families. An
inclusionary housing program might require developers to sell or rent 10 to 30 percent of new residential units
to lower-income residents. Many, but not all, programs partially offset the cost of providing affordable units by
offering developers one or more incentives such as tax abatements, parking reductions, or the right to build at
higher densities” (InclusionaryHousing.org, n.d.).
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Fortunately, Barcelona’s City Council “has approved two pioneering measures in the Spanish state in
defence of the right to housing: protection for 30% of all new-build homes and major renovation projects, and
the declaration designating the whole city as an area where the City Council has right of first refusal, the aim
being to give the administration preference in the acquisition of buildings and land plots.” A group made up of
the Observatory of Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (DESC), the Assembly of Neighbourhoods for
Sustainable Tourism (ABTS), the Federation of Barcelona Residents’ Associations (FAVB), the Mortgage
Victims Platform (PAH), and the Tenants’ Union is leading the charge in advocating for government to put a
stop to property speculation. BArcelona is the first Spanish city to implement such regulations. The reservation
means a very large increase in the amount of available public housing, most notably in central neighbourhoods
more prone to gentrification and where lack of land makes it difficult to build. It is estimated that under these
new regulations more than 50% of new affordable housing will be located in such neighbourhoods (Ajuntament
de Barcelona, 2018). The following map displays new and planned locations for social housing in the city, the
majority of which being “in process”. In the city’s Gothic Quarter, new emergency homes made from shipping
containers have emerged. The first building includes 12 apartments - four double bedroom units and the rest
single - as well as a clinic on the first floor and is available to tenants for a maximum of 5 years with rent being
decided according to the income and situation of each individual or family. Another shipping container
apartment complex is expected in Sant Martí. It is projected to have 42 units - 35 double bedroom, 7 single.

To cut a long story short, the title of this paper is a lie. There is no “quick” way to solve the issue of
rising homelessness in Barcelona, let alone Catalunya and the entirety of Spain. All of the 4-5 year plans to end
homelessness presented by each region in Spain have failed in one way or another, some not being implemented
at all. There are a host of causes and factors feeding people into the homeless pipeline with not much of a way
out. Those causes differ from city to city and region to region, along with the best possible ways of taking on the
A QUICK WAY TO SOLVE HOMELESSNESS IN BARCELONA 12

preventative framework discussed in this paper. What can be said is raising awareness and educating people on
the issues impacting the homeless can do numbers for the population as well as the organisations and services
providing assistance. Early Prevention and Accommodation & Support get a major boost by educating tenants
and landlords on their rights, passing laws regarding housing costs and rent caps, offering mediation services to
those at risk of homelessness and creating regulation in the housing sector in an effort to provide more
affordable apartments to those exiting homelessness. The recent laws that have been passed were due to
grassroots groups paying attention. They gathered public support and advocated for the homeless population.
The guide put together by the Arrels Foundation not only gives tips and tricks to those who have recently
become homeless, but it also serves as a helpful guide to those close to homelessness and raises awareness in the
public for the obstacles faced during homelessness. The regulation assigning 30% of new housing to be
designated as affordable housing was passed because of those who called the attention of the government to the
fact that there simply was not enough housing for those individuals and families ready to exit homelessness. The
education of the general public serves to help the entire city because honestly, everyone is at risk of
homelessness. SImultaneously, everyone also has a right to safe, acceptable and secure housing. And while
Barcelona has a long way to go, it is making steps in the right direction. With the help of its citizens, maybe it
will be able to accomplish its goals in just 5 years.
A QUICK WAY TO SOLVE HOMELESSNESS IN BARCELONA 13

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