chargement...
A court in the Spanish city of Mataró has fined a real estate company €10,000 after finding it guilty of discriminating against a man of Moroccan descent by denying him the rental of an apartment because of his origins. The ruling has been described as a landmark decision in the region’s fight against housing discrimination.
The case concerns Hamid, a Moroccan-born resident who has lived in Spain for around 20 years. He decided to take legal action after repeatedly seeing his rental applications rejected by several real estate agencies in the area. In one instance, he recorded an agent claiming that an apartment had already been rented, even though it was still available, evidence that proved decisive. The Office for Equal Treatment and Non-Discrimination, under Catalonia’s Ministry of Equality and Feminism, subsequently launched legal proceedings that resulted in the fine.
Hamid filed complaints against 12 companies, but expressed disappointment over the initial lack of response from Mataró’s municipal authorities, the Catalan Housing Agency, and the consumer protection body. The Catalan rights observatory DESC, which helped bring the case to light, said the penalty should serve as a clear warning to the real estate sector against discriminatory practices based on origin, religion, or race.
Speaking to Spanish media, Hamid said the aim of his action was «to change the way some actors in this sector operate, so that rental decisions are based on objective criteria, such as income and financial stability, rather than racial or religious background». Although nine of the companies escaped sanctions due to the statute of limitations, two others remain under investigation and could face penalties in the coming months.
