Alzina Living, owned by Norwegian businessman Erik Oren, has put two villas in Palma's Son Espanyolet area up for sale. These are the last two of the company's villas to have been used as holiday rentals, the Alzina Living activity having been the source of numerous complaints from residents for some seven years.
Oren built up a portfolio of a dozen homes in Son Espanyolet. The president of the local residents group, Ferràn Aguiló, explains: "He had about ten houses that he had renovated, each with up to 14 beds. In total, he had secured accommodation for more than 150 people. He had also bought another house, which he renovated to serve as a central kitchen to supply the other houses, in addition to a reception and maintenance centre." Erik Oren had created a resort within a residential neighbourhood in Palma.
Complaints led to inspections by the Balearic tourism ministry in 2019; the government had responsibility for holiday lets at that time. Two of the properties were deregistered for breaches of licence conditions; overcrowding was a reason. The 'kitchen' was a house acquired by Alzina Living. This was put up for sale in 2020 because Palma Town Hall denied it an activity licence.
As well as charges of neighbourhood gentrification, resident complaints were primarily to do with noise from the properties. Parties were not uncommon. Has Erik Oren finally bowed to residents' pressure? More likely is the intervention of the tourism authorities.
Aguiló notes that he is now more of a property developer. He has a development of semi-detached houses, each to be sold at over one million euros. "We're waiting to see what happens. We don't know if the next owner will be even worse; it could be an investment fund. At least with Erik Oren we knew who he was."
The two properties for sale - Villa Son Mas and Villa Sant Josep - are listed at three million and 2.6 million euros respectively. Son Mas has sixteen accommodation places, Sant Josep eleven. Although bookings are being advertised for 2026, they are on sale through property websites. The information for both points out that they have ETV licences as holiday rentals.
Aguiló doesn't see all this as a defeat for Erik Oren. "He bought houses for half a million euros and is now selling them for three. It's been very profitable for him. On C. Mas, where his villas are located, ten of the forty houses are currently for sale."