Maricarmen Abascal, an 87-year-old Spanish woman whose dramatic eviction highlighted Spain’s housing crisis, passed away at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 7, 2026. She died at Gregorio Marañón Hospital in Madrid. Her death occurred hours before she was scheduled to sign an eight-year rental contract to return to the apartment she lived in for more than seven decades.
According to reports from El País and other outlets, Abascal’s medical condition deteriorated sharply on Wednesday morning. Although she had remained relatively stable following her September 23 hospitalization, her health rapidly failed. She was sedated during her final hours and said a final goodbye to her cousin Vicente Lozano, 78, who served as her closest familial support.
The Tragic Context of Her Eviction
Abascal’s ordeal reached a boiling point when she was forcibly removed from her apartment in Madrid’s upscale Retiro district. Her father had originally rented the flat in 1956 under a protected tenancy agreement. Following her parents’ passing, Abascal maintained the tenancy, paying her monthly pension-backed rent of approximately €440 alongside utility bills.
In 2018, property firm Urbagestión Desarrollo e Inversión SL-owned by investment brothers Ricardo Alonso Fernández and Fernando Alonso Fuentes-acquired the building. The company proposed a rent increase to €1,650 per month, which exceeded her €1,350 monthly pension. After legal battles failed, police and social workers carried Abascal from the property on a stretcher on September 23, 2026, amid protests from local activists and supporters.
A Historic Agreement Arrived Too Late
Following public outrage, street demonstrations, and pressure from tenant advocacy groups, legal representatives for both parties reached a breakthrough. Abascal’s lawyer, Beatriz Duro, negotiated a new agreement with the landlords that would have allowed the elderly tenant to return under a sustainable financial framework.
However, the physical toll of the eviction and subsequent fortnight in the hospital proved insurmountable. Members of the Madrid Tenants Union, who kept vigil by her side during her final moments, expressed profound grief. The union had planned a festive pajama party for November 2 to celebrate her recovery and her upcoming 88th birthday.
“Although a historic agreement was reached that would have allowed her to go back home, this solution has come too late,” the Madrid Tenants Union stated following her passing.
Political Aftershocks and National Impact
Abascal’s case galvanized housing rights movements across Spain, triggering protests in cities like Madrid and Malaga, alongside announcements of a nationwide general strike scheduled for November 11. The social pressure, compounded by parliament’s legislative rejection of emergency housing decrees, prompted Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to call an early general election for November 29.
Political leaders across the spectrum expressed condolences. Sánchez posted a message on X lamenting the loss, while Territorial Policy Minister Angel Victor Torres described Abascal as a symbol of the struggles faced by vulnerable citizens attempting to secure affordable housing.
As the nation mourns her passing, labor and tenant unions have vowed to honor her memory by continuing the fight for stronger renter protections and systemic housing reform across Spain.
