On the 7th November, a new edition of the Meridiana MIPIM MeetUp, sponsored by GESVALT and RocaJunyent, was held to analyse the housing shortage in the Barcelona market.
The event, held at the offices of RocaJunyent, was attended by XAVIER SERRAMALERA CERCÓS, partner of the same firm, who offered a quality welcome to the more than 70 attendees. Afterwards, Anna Palasí, Head of Communication of Barcelona Catalonia, explained the novelties of the project in the next edition of MIPIM. An initiative of the Barcelona City Council, the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona (AMB) and the Generalitat de Catalunya through INCASÒL | Institut Català del Sòl, which aims to internationalise the Catalan territory through fairs such as MIPIM.
Barcelona hosts the debate on housing in the region
The round table, moderated by Roger Pla Madrid, partner at RocaJunyent, and with the participation of Dolors Jimenez Varas, Territorial Director of Catalonia at GESVALT, Mario Chisholm, Partner at Urban Input Group and Paco Hugas, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of CONREN TRAMWAY debated the situation of the residential market in Barcelona.
"The sale and purchase of housing has been reduced by 31% compared to last year". Dolors Jimenez Varas, highlighted the decline in residential property transactions thanks to the quarterly report prepared by GESVALT. The director of the firm in Catalonia also stated that the price of assets has increased by 3.4%. Despite this, one of the solutions provided by the appraiser is the change of use of commercial premises to transform them into housing, stating that it is a growing market.
"Barcelona has a transport problem". This is how the CEO of CONREN TRAMWAY began his speech, assuring that it is the first way to solve the residential problem in Barcelona. "The city needs faster and more efficient connectivity between the other provincial capitals," said the businessman.
Another of the solutions proposed by Hugas is the conversion of disused office buildings into housing, as well as moving small businesses to the ground floor and commercial premises of residential assets.
"Spain will be the new Germany" is how Mario Chisholm defined the opportunity Spain has to consolidate the real estate sector. The director of Urban Input Group, wanted to give a point of optimism to the lack of housing generation that our country is experiencing, pointing out that the current situation in Spain in macroeconomic and social terms is more positive than in northern Europe. To this end, he calls for the creation of forums for public-private dialogue to debate and find solutions to the city's current problems.
"MIPIM is a show to do business, but above all to learn about what international companies and other cities are doing".
The resident of APCE - Associació de Promotors de Catalunya, XAVIER VILAJOANA EDUARDO, began his speech by highlighting the opportunities offered by MIPIM and the internationalisation of companies, both public and private, in a global context. "MIPIM is a show where to do business, but above all to learn about what international companies or other cities are doing", even so, he remarked "The models that work in other European cities are not applicable to Barcelona, each city has its peculiarities", referring to the 30% of public housing in Paris.
After his reference to MIPIM, he emphasised the residential deficit in Catalonia, remarking that of the 25,000 homes required annually by the community, only 15,000 are delivered. "We have a lot of work to do and we have to generate global housing to which everyone has access", he remarked.
"Barcelona, a strategic city at MIPIM".
Finally, the CEO of Meridiana, official representatives of MIPIM in Iberia, confessed that Barcelona is a strategic city in MIPIM and a reference for its internationalisation policies.
Spain and Portugal generate great interest among international investors, which is why the presence of cities, regions and companies from this territory at MIPIM has increased exponentially in recent years.
Afterwards, there was a networking space where attendees and panelists were able to share impressions of the day.
