Mission impossible. This is the situation that young people between the ages of 16 and 29 in the province of Alicante face when it comes to emancipation. So much so that Eight out of ten people continue to live in the same household with their parents because low wages combined with high housing prices prevent them from being independent from the family environment.. This illuminating data is contained in a report by the Youth Council, which concludes that the average age of emancipation is 30.3 years. They should allocate 91.7 percent of their salaries to pay rent. It is therefore an extremely complex situation, which the Generalitat is trying to partially alleviate with a 30% increase in Youth Rental Bonus assistance.
The Youth Council Emancipation Observatory presented its latest report this Tuesday, corresponding to the first half of 2023. In the case of the Valencian Community, with data that can practically be extended to the province of Alicante, the study emphasizes that: The emancipation rate at that time was 15.5 percent; this rate was less than nine-tenths of that in Spain as a whole. and two points above the figure reached a year ago. In fact, this is the highest percentage of young people liberated since 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic. Employment and youth unemployment rates remained fairly stable, although temporary employment fell by 15.3 points compared to 2022.
With everything, Salaries were yes, lower than those of the state as a whole. and the average net salary of young people barely exceeded 10,000 euros. This meant that if a young person wanted to rent a house on his own, he would have to fork out 91.7% of his salary, and if he wanted to share a house, he would have to allocate 37.8%.
In the case of the province of Alicante, taking as reference the data obtained from the Active Population Survey (EPA), Youth unemployment rate is gradually decreasing in this periodSo much so that the rate, which was 31.5% in the first half of 2023, on which the report focuses, reached 37.4% in 2020. Currently, and largely as a result of labor reform that has reduced temporary employment, the rate is even lower, set at 22.6%.
In any case, the main obstacle to emancipation arises, as noted, from the wage-housing price binomial. And this Average salary for 18-25 year olds in Alicante is 7,462 euros per yearThis means that there are only nine states with lower salaries: Almería, Córdoba, Granada, Huelva, Jaén, Seville, Badajoz and Cáceres. Currently, the average salary in the 26 to 35 age group rises as high as €16,370, but remains in the low range nationally.
All this contradicts the price of the house. Regarding rent, the average price in the province last year increased by 15.9% to 9.9 euros per square meter.In cities such as Alicante, the increase rose by 16% to 10.8 euros. As for the purchase price, in this case it also increased by 11% at the provincial level.While it increased up to 2 thousand 55 euros per square meter, the capital increased by 17.5 percent to 1,915 euros.
In short, an overly complex liberation scenario in which unions demand strong measures. María Cueva, youth secretary of CC OO in L’Alacantí-Les Marines He does not hesitate to condemn what he describes as “exploitation and speculation” in the housing marketHe regrets that there are many tourist apartments in cities such as Ankara and Alicante. “It’s more cost-effective for people to rent it to tourists for the weekend instead of renting it to young people like us for a month, and for people who can’t afford the prices they’re asking us for.” And all this, he adds, in a city with a lot of empty apartments.
Yolanda Díaz, secretary general of the UGT in the same region, expresses herself in similar terms, referring to the low wages closely linked to the service sector. “It emphasizes that we are facing a structural problem. It is essential to implement an active youth employment policy as well as public housing.“It serves to confront this very serious situation.”
Meanwhile, Minister of Social Services, Equality and Housing, Salomé Pradas, issued a statement saying that Consell continues to work on “implementing measures and fulfilling the commitment made in the field of housing to promote the emancipation of the youngest.” At the head of the legislature.” Thus, he emphasized that the Official Gazette of the Generalitat Valenciana (DGV) published the latest report precisely this Tuesday. Youth Rental Bonus benefit privileges increased by 30% compared to the previous callThanks to the 6.4 million loan provided by the Generalitat, 3,910 young people benefited in 2022, while 5,176 young people benefited.
María Jácome: “Living alone is an impossible dream right now”
María Jácome is a 24-year-old girl from Alcoy who currently lives in her mother’s house, and although she once had the opportunity to live alone for a year, she now sees this as a very remote possibility. After learning the middle level of addiction and the high level of Sociocultural and Tourist Animation Higher Technique (Tasot), An opportunity arose to work for a year in Dénia, carrying out a research project on leisure and pastime in hospital spacesDuring this time, he spent a year living alone in the city of Marina Alta. However, when the contract ended, he had no choice but to return to his family home.
In his words, “I lost my job but At that point I had already realized that I had to share an apartment because half of my salary was going to rent.. In fact, even if I have a job now and earn more or less well, living alone is an impossible dream.
Currently studying to become a Nursing Assistant, she receives a job offer to go to a residency in Germany. This will be your second business adventure, albeit in a shared room.
Imanol Morales: “They want 700 euros for small houses that don’t even have an elevator”
Imanol Morales, 30, lives independently, but does so in an apartment owned by her parents. He admits that it would otherwise be financially impossible for him. “The house is paid for, so I can live on my own. Otherwise, I’ll have to choose between paying rent and eating“, mint. And, as he explains, he is currently working on a program contract with the City Council of Alicante, and his salary does not allow him to have a house of his own. «He emphasizes that the problem of the city is speculation, given that the rents are very expensive, since we are in a tourist area “They want 700 euros for small apartments that do not have an elevator and do not fit the price.”
And then, according to Imanol, circumstances come into play: «To rent, they need an employment contract that they look at with a magnifying glass., a monthly deposit and a deposit, which makes it completely impossible for you to participate in such an adventure. And the worst thing, he adds, is that things don’t get better. “There are no policies for young people, no one cares about us, so it is impossible to think about the future,” he concludes.
Sergi Vilaplana: “I became independent for a while, but I had to return to my family”
Sergi Vilaplana, 24, came to live independently in a rented apartment in Alcoy with his girlfriend, thinking that the income they earned would be sufficient. But harsh reality destroyed his illusions. «It is true that we were independent for a while, but we had no choice but to return to my parents’ house, because although the rents in Alcoy were not as expensive as in other cities, The truth is that we were having a hard time paying for electricity, water and internet.“, mint.
The truth was that they could not save, and entertainment and holidays were nothing but an impossible task. “Upstairs,” he recalls, “was a very small apartment with almost no light, and if you stop and think about it, it was kind of depressing to spend your whole life there.”
So they decided to retrace their steps to gain some momentum. In her words, “Being at Mom and Dad’s house We can build up some savings and expect both of us to have more stable jobs that will allow us to start over.although it has more solid foundations.
This is their dream, but no deadline has been set at the moment, considering the difficulties young people in general face in emancipating themselves.
Elena Baeza: “Housing should be a guaranteed right”
Elena Baeza, 19, is a sophomore studying Law at the University of Alicante (UA). He lives with his parents, which is logical for his age, but the problem is that he believes this situation will continue for many years, given the difficulties he says he will face when he becomes independent.
As he emphasizes, “The real problem is job insecurity. The wages earned by young people are very low and, on top of this, are in many cases linked to a high level of transience, making access to housing impossible. Also due to the high prices asked in both rental and purchase formats. According to Elena, “Housing is now a market good, although it is a guaranteed right. The public housing stock needs to be increased further and rental prices really need to be limited.». Likewise, he thinks that there should be a public dormitory network that will facilitate the accommodation of students from outside Alicante.
And he concludes: “To have a roof to live under.” I insist that this should be a right that will also help us establish roots in the region.