An 87-year-old pensioner whose eviction became a powerful symbol of Spain’s housing crisis and triggered protests across the country has died, according to a tenants’ union.
Maricarmen Abascal was removed from the Madrid flat where she had lived for more than 70 years after reportedly being unable to meet a sharply increased rent.
In September, disturbing footage showed the frail grandmother being carried from the property on a stretcher. Her eviction prompted nationwide demonstrations and intensified a political dispute over housing policy.
Abascal was taken to hospital after the court-ordered eviction and has since died, the Madrid Tenants’ Union said.
“We regret to announce that Maricarmen passed away today,” the union said in a statement, describing her case as “a turning point in the history of this country”.
Her eviction became a rallying point for campaigners seeking stronger protections for renters and highlighted the mounting pressure facing households across Spain.
Her death comes as Spain’s Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has called a snap election after his government suffered a major legislative defeat over emergency housing measures.
In recent weeks, thousands of Spaniards have taken to the streets to demand action on housing affordability. Anger has been amplified by the widely publicised removal of Abascal from the home she had occupied for more than seven decades.
Parliament later rejected the proposed housing reforms, prompting a fresh wave of protests across the country.
An 87-year-old pensioner whose eviction became a symbol of Spain’s housing crisis and sparked nationwide protests has died, according to a tenants’ union
People gather at a protest camp in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol following the death of Maricarmen Abascal
Maricarmen waits at home on September 23, 2026, to find out whether her eviction will proceed or be stopped
Maricarmen was removed from the property despite pleas from supporters
Women light candles as crowds gather at the Puerta del Sol protest camp following the death of Maricarmen Abascal
Demonstrators gather after learning of Maricarmen Abascal’s death
Referring to the rejected measures, the Madrid Tenants’ Union said: “While a historic agreement had been reached that would have allowed her to return home, this solution has come too late.
“This was an absolutely avoidable situation after a torturous process.”
Abascal was carried from the property on September 23 after a dispute over a proposed 275 per cent increase in her rent.
Video showed riot police breaking through a barricade made from chairs, shelves and a lamp as supporters tried to stop the court-ordered eviction.
Tens of thousands of people marched through Madrid on Saturday to protest Abascal’s eviction and call for stronger tenant protections amid a housing shortage and soaring rents.
Abascal’s lawyer, Beatriz Duro, said both sides had shown ‘goodwill’ and agreed a new contract under which she would pay a similar amount of rent.
Duro previously said Abascal, who was being treated for exhaustion, would sign the agreement once she felt well enough.
She described the deal as the ‘result of the social mobilisation’, while supporters hailed it as a victory but vowed to continue campaigning against evictions and for more affordable housing.
Abascal’s father first rented the flat in Madrid’s upmarket Retiro district in 1956. She remained the tenant after her parents died, with her rent protected under an old tenancy agreement.
Urbagestión Desarrollo e Inversión SL, owned by investment brothers Ricardo Alonso Fernández and Fernando Alonso Fuentes, bought the property in 2018.
Abascal had been paying around €440 (£379) a month, but the company later proposed increasing the rent to €1,650 (£1,420), according to Spanish reports. Her monthly pension was €1,350.
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Three previous attempts to evict her were blocked by the courts.
The Bank of Spain estimates the country is short of around 700,000 homes.
Referring to the rejected measures, the Madrid Tenants’ Union said: ‘While a historic agreement was reached that would have allowed her to return to her home, this solution has come too late. ‘An absolutely avoidable situation after a torturing process’
Protesters and police clash on September 23, 2026 in Madrid, Spain
Spanish riot police removes one of the activists, who were trying to prevent the eviction of Maricarmen Abascal
Thousands of demonstrators march through central Madrid, Spain, on September 26, to protest the recent eviction of Maricarmen Abascal
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has promised housing relief measures when his cabinet meets on Tuesday, while his Socialist Party, which lacks a parliamentary majority, hopes to pass legislation addressing public anger.
Ms Abascal’s lawyer claims the building’s owners had not spoken directly to her once in the eight years since the purchase.
Both brothers are lawyers and have been administrators of Urbagestión since it was founded in 2005.
The firm paid around €240,000 (£207,000) for Ms Abascal’s apartment, according to reports.
The men are also linked to more than a dozen other companies, including businesses in property, construction and pharmacy sector advisory services.
British pianist James Rhodes revealed after the eviction that he had contacted Urbagestión and offered to pay Ms Abascal’s rent or buy the apartment so she could remain there. He said the firm rejected both proposals.
Supporters of Ms Abascal camped outside the building on September 22, joined by celebrities including Javier Bardem’s brother, Carlos, and the singer Ana Belén, who read out the poem Desahucio (Eviction) by Rafael Alberti.
Police carried out the court-ordered eviction, while health workers took Ms Abascal from the building as protesters chanted, ‘Maricarmen, you are not alone’.
The legal battle reached the Supreme Court which ruled in favour of the firm, clearing the way for the eviction, the Madrid renters’ union said.
Police officers charged and dragged away dozens of activists who had camped outside Ms Abascal’s building to try to stop the eviction, to cries of ‘shame!’ from protesters.
After leaving the building, she was taken to the Gregorio Marañón Hospital. She refused the free emergency placement offered by the city and was thought to be staying with a relative.
Amnesty International Spain slammed ‘a violation of human rights’ and ‘a system that puts the speculative interests of a vulture fund before Ms Abascal’s right to stay in her house’.
‘It isn’t an isolated case, it is just another portrayal of the suffering that thousands of households go through in Spain,’ Amnesty said in a statement.
In an interview with public broadcaster RTVE recorded on September 22, Ms Abascal called the company ‘inhuman, and all in order to make money’.
‘You cannot make a person live for seven years with a machete hanging over their neck,’ she said, blaming the national, regional and city authorities for her plight.
Socialist Housing Minister Isabel Rodriguez insisted the minority Leftist government had repeatedly tried to pass a law to ban such evictions and accused the conservative-run Madrid region of ‘rolling out the red carpet for these speculators’.
Housing has for years been a top concern for Spaniards as supply falls short of demand, with rents and purchasing prices soaring relentlessly as elsewhere in the European Union.
Residents in the world’s second-most visited country blame short-term tourist rentals such as Airbnb for driving up prices and cutting supply, sparking protests in hotspots including Barcelona.
‘I’m leaving Madrid, because Madrid isn’t Madrid. And the people of Madrid are no longer Madrilenos. They are all the tourists that you have in Gran Via,’ Ms Abascal told RTVE, referring to the Spanish capital’s main commercial thoroughfare.
This is a breaking news story, more to follow.
