The District Real Estate Exhibition has decided to change its location in its next edition and will choose Madrid instead of Barcelona, where its annual event has been held since its inception, in 2022, according to what was announced. Vanguard. This was announced on Tuesday by the President of the Madrid Region, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, who highlighted “the development of the international summit in the region to strengthen its image as a magnet for major international investments and exhibitions.” After four years in Barcelona, the meeting will be held from 22 to 24 September 2026 at IFEMA Madrid. Next Business Exhibitions, which is responsible for organizing The District, expects the event to bring together more than 15,000 industry professionals in its next edition.
The second edition, in September 2023, began with protests and some demonstrators threw paint at the first attendees to denounce real estate speculation. The presence of investment funds such as Blackstone, Rockfield, Starwood or Hynes has caused concern, especially in sectors of activity for the right to housing. Then Congress President Juan Villayos confirmed that the third edition would be held in the Catalan capital: “This event will not go anywhere else.”
The development of the scenario in The District is partly due to a “lack of institutional support.” The management expressed its satisfaction with the support it received from the Community of Madrid, which it describes as an actor that has committed to attracting investments in all issues. This year, Barcelona Mayor Jaume Colboni suspended the nominal support of 250,000 euros to achieve a positive vote in the House of Commons and the approval of a package of 321 subsidies for cultural, social, vital and economic promotion entities worth 27 million euros. Despite this, Area Director Juan Villayos thanked the work of the Barcelona City Council for its “cooperation in the organisation, which has allowed the event to continue setting the course for the European real estate sector”.
The weight of investments coming from Latin America, which is very present in the Spanish capital, is another important driver for The District. “Latin American investors are turning their attention to Spain, which acts as a gateway for new money in Europe. Madrid has concentrated more than 60% of this capital activity in the country since 2019, reaffirming its role as a link between the two continents,” the organization said. Velayos celebrated by saying: “Holding the next edition in Madrid will contribute to the advancement of the industry at the European level, but also to Spain continuing to host a global event.”
The exhibition, which this year attracted 14,500 executives, has become a meeting point for investors, promoters and consultants specializing in the real estate field, and more specifically, in investment. In all its editions, members of groups, unions, and platforms advocating the right to housing demonstrated against celebrating the event due to the housing situation in the city.
Leader of the House of Commons, Jessica Albiach, who is currently lobbying Salvador Illa’s government to approve a law banning speculative buying, received the news with enthusiasm. “It is exceptional news. We have already asked BComú not to support the fair anymore. It is great news that we are expelling speculators from Barcelona and Catalonia,” he noted in the first assessment.