The platform for people affected by mortgages, Ahinor, assures that in the month of April alone, 23 evictions have been carried out in Lanzarote. “This month has been a catastrophe”, says the president of the association, Francisco Santana, who points out that they are “overwhelmed with work.”
Regarding previous months, Ahinor is aware of about “10 or 12 evictions” in each of them. ”When there were the fewest evictions in the Canary Islands was in the first quarter of 2021, and there were 675 foreclosures. Imagine that it was the month with the least”, he emphasized.
The problem of eviction is compounded by the lack of housing in the Canary Islands, which prevents many people from accessing a rental or a mortgage. “There isn't any. The rentals set requirements for families that are unattainable”, explains Francisco Santana.
Lack of free legal assistance
Francisco Santana explains that one of the main problems faced by people affected by evictions is the lack of free assistance. “The Bar Association closes the doors to people, and does not give them the right to judicial protection so that they can defend themselves”, criticizes the president of Ahinor.
“The Bar Association does not understand that until the last order, until the eviction order, it is an order that must be signed by his Lordship. It is a judicial order, and he has the right to be assisted and protected by justice and by the bar association”, says Francisco Santana, who adds that in the face of an eviction case, the collegiate body “closes the case.”
“We have also written to the Bar Association, showing our disagreement, and to see what the dean of the Bar Association responds”, says Santana, who adds that the association provides assistance to people with their lawyers, but that they cannot afford the entire procedure.
“The presence of a solicitor is also necessary, and that is determined by the courts, and we do not have the economic means to pay them”, says Santana, who also explains that a solicitor can charge “up to 80 euros for submitting a document.” “There are families that have aid of 450 euros, and they cannot pay it. If we dedicate ourselves to paying all the solicitors for vulnerable families, we could not assume it”, he adds.
“We have not had any evictions as long as we catch it in time”
Ahinor has existed since 2009, coinciding with the economic crisis that was experienced then, and which meant that many families were left homeless. From there, the association has worked to prevent foreclosures, and Santana assures that “in 95%” of the cases they have reached agreements with the bank.
“Since 2009 we have not yet had an eviction, as long as we catch it in time. If we catch them like this, we have to stick to the Covid decrees, the moratoriums for vulnerable people who have no housing alternative or who come from evictions due to mortgages”, explains the president of the association.
“We always look for a solution. But I insist, if we catch them in time. If we arrive late, as they say: health and luck. We try everything, but this percentage of agreements is a responsibility for the association”, he adds.
Many people are unaware of their housing rights
As a result of the pandemic, the Spanish Government suspended evictions that met certain requirements, such as the loss of work or purchasing power due to a temporary layoff derived from the pandemic.
“There were people who saw their income reduced by 35% due to a temporary layoff due to the pandemic. But if the couple is on temporary layoff, we are talking about a 70% reduction, and if on top of that one of them had the bad luck of being stopped, we are talking about 135% less”, says Francisco Santana, who assures that they are finding people "who are unaware of their housing rights."
The president of Ahinor also refers to the existence of other decrees, such as the code of good practices, which could help prevent eviction. “If the case is taken in time, and having sufficient information, we can reach agreements with the bank”, he insists.
“In the last part of the code of good practices there is talk of payment in kind, but to get there you have to go through the shortage”, explains the president of Ahinor, who points out that with the new social rental mortgage law, which is seven years old, “more respite is given to the family.”
“Maybe families that have a 40-year mortgage and have only paid one year, maybe the best buyer is even the bank, and we can reach agreements and get out in the best way”, adds Francisco Santana, who regrets that many people who are going through such a situation are unaware of their rights, and also fail to access legal aid lawyers.
