The youth emancipation rate in the Balearic Islands stood at 16.2 percent in the second half of 2024, a figure that represents a drop of almost two points compared to the same period of the previous year and that keeps the archipelago among the regions with the greatest difficulties in access to housing for the young population.
The data, collected in the latest report of the Observatori d’Emancipació Juvenil and presented this Tuesday in Palma by the president of the Consell de la Joventut de les Illes Balears, Pau Emili Muñoz, and the president of the Youth Council of Spain, Andrea González Henry, reflect a critical situation in which employment alone does not guarantee the possibility of starting an independent life.
According to the study, the average salary of young people between 16 and 29 years old barely grew four euros in the last half of the year, from 1,172 euros to 1,175.96. Meanwhile, the average rental price in the Balearic Islands rose by 9.3 percent compared to 2023, reaching 1,408 euros per month, and housing for sale rose by 12.1 percent.
The most expensive housing in the state and seven years’ salary for the down payment.
Those responsible for the report warn that, in comparative terms, the Balearic Islands leads the rise in the cost of both rented and owned housing, with figures that exceed the state averages. A young person needs to spend 7.1 years of full salary just to cover the entrance of an apartment, compared to four years on average in the whole of Spain.
The impossibility of accessing housing is reflected in the most significant figure of the study: 111.9 percent of the average net youth salary is spent on rent. In the case of young women, this percentage rises to 122 percent, due to the persistent gender wage inequality. For those who opt to buy, the effort is similar: the monthly cost of a mortgage already represents 111 percent of net salary.
Half work, but only one in ten live outside the family home
Despite the fact that nearly 50 percent of young people between 16 and 29 years of age in the Balearic Islands are employed, only 10.9 percent of them live outside the family home. This means that nine out of ten young people with their own income do not manage to emancipate themselves.
The situation is even more paradoxical if we take into account that 37.2 percent of employed young people combine work and studies, a figure that has increased by more than 14 percentage points over the previous year. In addition, 35.9 percent are overqualified for the job they hold, and one in ten young people have short-time contracts despite their availability to work more hours.
The Consell de la Joventut calls for “urgent and courageous” solutions
Faced with this panorama, the Consell de la Joventut de les Illes Balears has presented a series of proposals addressed to the administrations. Pau Emili Muñoz warned that “the longer it takes to act, the more radical and forceful the measures must be“, and described the situation as a “vital collapse” for the youth of the islands.
Among the proposals put forward are the conversion of obsolete facilities such as the Son Busquets barracks in Palma to public housing, its transfer to social cooperatives, the reservation of 15 percent of the public housing stock for young people and the limitation of rental prices. According to Muñoz, although the Government has already begun to implement some of these measures, it is necessary to move forward with more decisiveness.
“Working no longer guarantees even beginning to imagine an independent life, and the skyrocketing cost of housing is driving young people out of their own territory,” Muñoz denounced.
One in seven young people is at risk of poverty
The report also points out that 13.7 percent of young people in the Balearic Islands are at risk of poverty, a figure that shows the deterioration of living conditions even among those who are employed.
For her part, the president of the Spanish Youth Council, Andrea González Henry, stressed that “talking about youth is not just about data, but about rights, about the present, about democratic quality“, and called on institutions to make a structural change in public policies.
Among the priority demands, González Henry highlighted the need for real intervention in the housing market, with a massive increase in affordable public rental housing, an effective regulation of rental prices in stressed areas, and the improvement of the youth rental voucher, with simpler procedures and adaptation to real prices.
He also called for a reform of the labor market to guarantee stability and dignity in employment, as well as greater territorial equity, since the reality of youth emancipation varies significantly between communities. “Madrid and Catalonia present the best data, while the Balearic Islands, Castilla-La Mancha or Andalusia are among the worst,” he warned.
