Barcelona is booming. Tourism levels are at an all-time high… and everyone wants a piece of the Catalan pie! Unfortunately, it’s only natural with so many properties on offer to tourists that some are going to be ‘illegal’…. Times are tough in Spain – people want to make money… but at what cost? At who’s detriment?

As Product Manager of HostelBookers, I have learned that especially over the past few years there has been an alarming influx of these ‘illegal’ properties trying to infiltrate the market. This may mean that they:

A. operate without a business license altogether OR

B. operate without a valid business license IE – not a true representation of the type of license they should hold, in comparison to what they are

While a lot of these licenses are legible in the various languages they are submitted in, it is also quite common that they…