Does Barcelona’s international image help or hinder long-term real estate investment? Do investors view the city as a stable and transparent real estate market? To debate this topic, Iberian Property hosted an Editorial Breakfast, with the support of Cushman & Wakefield, Barcelona Investment Office and Barcelona City Council, which took place on the 1st of October at the new C&W headquarters on Avenida Diagonal.
Víctor Iborra, Partner at Meridia Capital, offered a candid assessment of the housing challenge that continues to shape investment sentiment. “At the moment, housing as an asset class is largely off the radar for institutional investors,” he said. “The problem is not just regulatory uncertainty — it’s that the current framework makes many projects unviable.”
He expressed regret at the mismatch between good intentions and practical outcomes. “It’s frustrating,” Víctor admitted. “Many measures taken in recent years work against their stated goals. We all want more affordable housing, but the way the rules are structured discourages the very capital that could help deliver it.”
The impact is visible in the data. “There are practically no institutional residential transactions taking place in Barcelona,” he observed. “Flex Living doesn’t exist here in the way it does in Madrid or other cities — not because demand is lacking, but because regulation changes every few months, creating constant uncertainty.”
Despite that, Víctor reaffirmed his confidence in Barcelona’s potential. “The fundamentals are there — talent, lifestyle, international appeal. It’s an extraordinary city. What we need is consistency: a clear, long-term framework that allows investors to plan with confidence.”
He also called for coherence between policy and ambition. “If Barcelona wants to be a world-class destination for capital,” he said, “it must also compete on predictability. Investors can accept regulation — what they cannot manage is unpredictability.”
For Meridia Capital, which remains one of Barcelona’s strongest believers, that alignment between governance and growth is the missing piece. “This is a city that should be attracting patient, institutional capital,” Víctor concluded. “With a stable framework, it could be one of Europe’s most attractive living markets.”
