Spanish Property Firm Offers Solution for Evicted 87-Year-Old in Madrid

A Spanish property company proposed a solution on Friday that could allow 87-year-old Maricarmen, who uses a wheelchair, to return to the Madrid apartment she was evicted from on Wednesday after living there for 70 years. The company, Urbagestión Desarrollo e Inversión, said it offered Madrid's city hall to integrate the home into the municipal Reviva program for affordable rentals, stating the apartment is not for sale and offering to cede it to municipal housing and social services for a "stable and affordable" rent. It also claimed it had sought a negotiated solution since 2023, including a new lease at 40-50% below market value. The proposal follows widespread protests in Madrid's Retiro neighborhood, where hundreds gathered to block the eviction. However, the Tenants' Union, which supported Maricarmen, said it had not been informed of the offer, and the case has become a symbol of Spain's housing crisis, prompting Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to announce new tenant protection measures.