Palma eviction leaves hotel worker sleeping in car

Pilar López spent the summer sleeping in her car after being evicted from her home in Palma, Mallorca. The former hotel worker described her situation through tears at Palma City Hall on Thursday, 24 September 2026. She is now staying at a hostel in Secar de la Real.

López said she receives €480 through a benefit for people over 52 and had paid into the hotel sector for 40 years. Since July, she said, she had slept on the street, washed with a bowl at Mercadona and showered in Ciudad Jardín. Her evening meal was sometimes only bread and cold cuts, she said.

She said the bank sold her Joan Crespí home to a so-called vulture fund and that she was given just 24 hours' notice to leave on 2 June. López said she was first offered €60,000 to move out, then €10,000.

López said she had been advised to move to mainland Spain, where housing could be cheaper. But she said she would not leave Mallorca, where she has lived since 1987.

Palma City Council said its social services have supported López at different stages since 2019. Her case remains open and she has a named social worker.

After the June 2026 eviction, the council arranged financial help towards accommodation in a hostel and referred her to its First Social Services Attention Team. It said she is also receiving support with paperwork, housing advice and social-rent agreements.

Topics: Housing · Social affairs · Politics · Palma

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com