I am, by instinct and conviction, a free-market libertarian. I believe markets allocate resources more efficiently than governments. I believe property rights matter. I believe investors should be rewarded for taking risks.
But every now and then a story arrives that forces even the most committed capitalist to pause and ask a difficult question: just because something can be done, does it mean it should be?
That is the uncomfortable debate unfolding in Spain following the death of 87-year-old Madrid tenant Maricarmen Abascal, whose eviction became the catalyst for a national political crisis.
Abascal had lived in her apartment for most of her life. In September she became a symbol of Spain's housing crisis when the real estate company that owned the property reportedly imposed a dramatic rent increase, widely reported as being around 230 percent, which she was unable to meet. She was ultimately evicted from her home on a stretcher. Images of the eviction spread across the country and sparked outrage.
What followed was extraordinary.
Protests erupted nationwide. Hundreds of demonstrators camped in Madrid's famous Puerta del Sol square, while housing activists turned Abascal into the face of a broader movement demanding stronger tenant protections and housing reforms.
The pressure on Spain's minority left-wing government became intense. Proposed emergency housing measures, including tighter restrictions on evictions and automatic lease renewals, were debated in parliament. When those measures failed to pass, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez responded by calling a snap election for 29 November, bringing forward a vote that was not originally due until 2027. Housing has suddenly become the defining issue in Spanish politics.
Tragically, a deal was eventually reached that would have allowed Abascal to return to her home, but after being hospitalized following the eviction she died before that solution could truly take effect.
So what lessons should we take from this?
The first is that housing markets are never purely economic.
A house is an investment. It is also a home. Those two realities coexist, and tension occurs when one completely overwhelms the other.
The second lesson is that Spain's problems did not emerge overnight.
Many people forget that Spain suffered one of the largest property booms and busts in modern European history. Between the late 1990s and 2008, cheap credit, massive construction activity, foreign investment and strong population growth fuelled a spectacular housing bubble. When it burst, Spain experienced severe economic pain, banking stress and years of stagnation.
Ironically, today's crisis is almost the reverse. Instead of too much housing, many cities now face insufficient supply in the locations where people actually want to live.
Immigration is part of that story.
Spain has experienced significant population growth over recent decades, and migrants inevitably require somewhere to live. Increased demand without a corresponding increase in housing supply pushes rents higher. That is not an ideological statement. It is simple economics.
Airbnb and short-term rentals are also part of the equation, though perhaps not the entire explanation. In tourist hotspots, thousands of homes have shifted from long-term residential use to short-term accommodation. Housing advocates argue this has reduced rental supply and increased rents, while others note that broader supply constraints remain the fundamental problem.
And then there is the hardest question of all.
Should a landlord be allowed to increase rent by 230 percent?
Legally, perhaps. Economically, the argument can be made if market rents have moved substantially.
But markets depend on consent and legitimacy as much as they depend on contracts.
A 5 percent increase reflects market movement. A 10 percent increase may be painful. A 230 percent increase effectively tells the existing tenant they are no longer welcome.
When the tenant is an 87-year-old pensioner who has lived in the property for decades, the public does not see a market transaction. They see displacement.
Free markets are powerful. They create wealth, investment and opportunity. But if capitalism is to retain public support, it must also maintain a sense of fairness.
The death of Maricarmen Abascal will not solve Spain's housing crisis. Yet her story serves as a reminder that behind every housing statistic is a human being. Ignore that reality for too long, and eventually voters stop arguing about housing policy and start voting for politicians promising radical change.
That may be the most important lesson of all.
Share this post
Percival M Crane
19 October 2026