How to find Spanish villages that are helping people to move there
If you're thinking of making a move to the Spanish countryside and giving back to a rural community, here's how you can find the villages attracting new residents with incentives and what they're looking for in return.
Depopulation in La España vaciada (emptied Spain) is a growing problem that affects more than half of the country (almost 300,000 km2), mostly large swathes of mainland Spain's interior.
Twenty-three of Spain's 50 provinces have seen their populations drop in recent decades. With just over 8 million inhabitants in total, they only represent 17 percent of the country's total population.
It's a trend that's been taking place since the days of Franco, when young people left rural communities to look for work in Spain's big cities.
The country's population grew by around 38 percent from 1975 to 2021, but this increase has only been seen in specific areas.
Provinces such as Zamora in Castilla y León have seen their population drop by more than 31 percent during that period, according to the population figures released by the Spanish National Institute of Statistics (INE), while others such as the Balearic Islands have doubled their population.
As a result of this, town halls in many villages have been trying to attract more people to go and live there either by offering incentives, attractive rental prices, or detailing the jobs available or the types of businesses they need.
If you feel like you would enjoy a slower pace of life and want to help give back to a small Spanish community, then there are several ways you can find out what different villages are offering, and which one would suit you.
There are several lists in both local and international media of Spanish villages that will pay you to move there, and while many of these are no longer offering these schemes, there are places where you can find out what’s currently being offered.
READ ALSO - VERIFIED: Is it true these Spanish villages are paying people to move there?
The website HolaPueblo.com is a great resource to help you discover these types of villages and find out what they offer.
According to the site, despite Spain's territorial disparity there has been a recent shift in people interested in making a change of life towards more rural communities, attracted by a healthier and more sustainable life alongside nature.
The website includes a map of Spain with many of Spain’s depopulated villages. Each one you click on will bring up various information for you on what the village is like and what it offers.
Screenshot showing HolaPueblo's map of villages that are looking for new residents and bright minds.
As well as describing the town, the site details the prices of properties to rent or to buy, the internet speed for those who need to work online, the types of jobs available, the types of businesses the municipality wants to attract or ones that will do well, the services available in the village and internet speeds.
There are villages across much of the Spanish territory looking for new residents, in Galicia, the Basque Country, Castilla y León, the Valencia region, Andalusia and Castilla-La Mancha.
For example, the village of Villarramiel in Burgos needs companies that can transform leather into finished products, active tourism companies, home delivery and other services for the elderly, private transport businesses and maintenance companies such as plumbing and masonry.
Near the beautiful city of Ronda, the village of Cartamija wants new residents to develop their tourist accommodation and industry, offering in return cheap land, easy permits and financial help.
The village of Lastras de Cuéllar in Segovia is offering houses for rent for as little as €300 as well as seven different rooms for co-working. The neighbours together with the City Council have also created the Lastras Vive Rural Association with the aim of helping families interested in settling in the municipality, providing information on housing, subsidies for entrepreneurship, and details on the municipality.
Each village has its individual preferences for the type of skills and business ideas new residents can bring with them, from food and wine production, to plumbing, tourism or teaching.
The website updates its information regularly, so you can find all the latest details and offers from the particular villages you’re interested in or simply get inspiration and discover which village might suit you and the new lifestyle you’re looking for.
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Depopulation in La España vaciada (emptied Spain) is a growing problem that affects more than half of the country (almost 300,000 km2), mostly large swathes of mainland Spain's interior.
Twenty-three of Spain's 50 provinces have seen their populations drop in recent decades. With just over 8 million inhabitants in total, they only represent 17 percent of the country's total population.
It's a trend that's been taking place since the days of Franco, when young people left rural communities to look for work in Spain's big cities.
The country's population grew by around 38 percent from 1975 to 2021, but this increase has only been seen in specific areas.
Provinces such as Zamora in Castilla y León have seen their population drop by more than 31 percent during that period, according to the population figures released by the Spanish National Institute of Statistics (INE), while others such as the Balearic Islands have doubled their population.
As a result of this, town halls in many villages have been trying to attract more people to go and live there either by offering incentives, attractive rental prices, or detailing the jobs available or the types of businesses they need.
If you feel like you would enjoy a slower pace of life and want to help give back to a small Spanish community, then there are several ways you can find out what different villages are offering, and which one would suit you.
There are several lists in both local and international media of Spanish villages that will pay you to move there, and while many of these are no longer offering these schemes, there are places where you can find out what’s currently being offered.
READ ALSO - VERIFIED: Is it true these Spanish villages are paying people to move there?
The website HolaPueblo.com is a great resource to help you discover these types of villages and find out what they offer.
According to the site, despite Spain's territorial disparity there has been a recent shift in people interested in making a change of life towards more rural communities, attracted by a healthier and more sustainable life alongside nature.
The website includes a map of Spain with many of Spain’s depopulated villages. Each one you click on will bring up various information for you on what the village is like and what it offers.
As well as describing the town, the site details the prices of properties to rent or to buy, the internet speed for those who need to work online, the types of jobs available, the types of businesses the municipality wants to attract or ones that will do well, the services available in the village and internet speeds.
There are villages across much of the Spanish territory looking for new residents, in Galicia, the Basque Country, Castilla y León, the Valencia region, Andalusia and Castilla-La Mancha.
For example, the village of Villarramiel in Burgos needs companies that can transform leather into finished products, active tourism companies, home delivery and other services for the elderly, private transport businesses and maintenance companies such as plumbing and masonry.
Near the beautiful city of Ronda, the village of Cartamija wants new residents to develop their tourist accommodation and industry, offering in return cheap land, easy permits and financial help.
The village of Lastras de Cuéllar in Segovia is offering houses for rent for as little as €300 as well as seven different rooms for co-working. The neighbours together with the City Council have also created the Lastras Vive Rural Association with the aim of helping families interested in settling in the municipality, providing information on housing, subsidies for entrepreneurship, and details on the municipality.
Each village has its individual preferences for the type of skills and business ideas new residents can bring with them, from food and wine production, to plumbing, tourism or teaching.
The website updates its information regularly, so you can find all the latest details and offers from the particular villages you’re interested in or simply get inspiration and discover which village might suit you and the new lifestyle you’re looking for.
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