Overview
- The Red Europea contra la Pobreza (EAPN‑ES) published the XVI 'El Estado de la Pobreza' on Thursday, October 15, 2026, using 2025 survey microdata and found that 43.6% of people renting at market rates in Spain are at risk of poverty or social exclusion.
- The report puts Spain’s overall AROPE at 25.7% and records a 28.4% child‑poverty rate, the highest in the EU, signalling that many families with children are pushed toward poverty by housing costs.
- Regional breakdowns show acute hotspots: Castilla‑La Mancha reports 63.7% of market renters at risk, Castilla y León 53.3%, and Andalucía an AROPE of 34.7% with 42% of market renters at risk, while Madrid has the largest share of households spending more than 40% of income on housing.
- Housing stress is visible in payments data: 10.6% of the population delayed rent or mortgage payments in 2025, with elevated arrears reported in Murcia, Andalucía, Canarias, Cantabria, Asturias and Castilla‑La Mancha and in the cities of Ceuta and Melilla.
- EAPN branches urge concrete policy action including a larger public social‑rental stock, mobilisation of vacant housing, early‑warning systems for evictions and stronger income supports to protect children and working renters from continued displacement.