Numbers: Emancipation rate fell from over 20% to 14% (minus 6 points in one year)
Cause: Soaring rents against an average youth salary of €11,364 per year
Poverty risk: 30% of young Canarians are at risk of poverty; 36% of those in employment
Demand: PSOE demands rental subsidies, declaration of stressed housing markets, measures against large landlords
The figures are an alarm signal: in 2024, around 20,000 young people in the Canary Islands had to move back in with their parents. Not out of convenience, but because rents across the archipelago have become simply unaffordable. The emancipation rate — the share of young people living independently — has plunged from over 20 per cent to around 14 per cent within a single year.
€11,364 Annual Salary, 30 Per Cent in Poverty
The average salary for young Canarians stands at €11,364 per year — less than €950 per month. At the same time, rents in tourist centres and island capitals have exploded in recent years. The result: 30 per cent of young Canarians are officially at risk of poverty. Among those who are employed, the figure rises to 36 per cent — in-work poverty in its purest form.
PSOE Secretary General Ángel Víctor Torres, former president of the Canary Islands, presented these figures at a meeting with around sixty young party officials in La Laguna, Tenerife. His message: "We are not talking about the future of young people — we are talking about their present."
What the PSOE Demands
Bono de Alquiler Joven: The Canarian government should co-finance the national youth rental subsidy with its own funds — currently €250 per month for a maximum of two years.
Declare stressed housing markets: The regional government should apply the stressed housing market declaration (zonas de mercado residencial tensionado) provided for by national housing law. This would trigger rent caps and stricter rules for large landlords.
Measures against large landlords: The PSOE proposes specific tax measures targeting major property owners to increase housing supply.
Public rental advice office: A public information point for tenants covering rights, obligations and available subsidies.
School Dropout Rate Also Rising
Beyond the housing crisis, Torres warned of another setback: the school dropout rate in the Canary Islands has risen to around 16 per cent — under the previous government it had been reduced to 11 per cent. Torres accused the current government of blocking the contract programme for public universities and favouring the private education system.
14% emancipation rate (previous year: over 20%)
20,000 young people back in the family home (2024)
€11,364 average annual salary for young Canarians
30% of young people at risk of poverty
36% of employed young people in poverty
16% school dropout rate (previously: 11%)
€250/month national rental subsidy (Bono Alquiler Joven)
18 Million Tourists, But No Room for Young People
The irony is bitter: the Canary Islands welcome 18 million tourists per year, the economy grows above the national average, public budgets are at an all-time high. And yet one in three young people cannot afford an independent life. The holiday rental economy, the hotel construction boom and demand from digital nomads and northern European retirees are driving prices up — at the expense of those born and working on the islands.
Nira Fierro, the PSOE's organisational secretary in the Canaries, put it bluntly: it is unacceptable that in a region with record revenues, one in three young people should live in poverty. The question is whether the CC-PP government recognises the urgency — or whether a lost generation becomes political collateral damage.