Alicia del Río, a spokesperson for the Sindicato de Inquilinas, asked Pope Leo XIV to stop real estate speculation within the Catholic Church.
The demand highlights a growing tension between housing advocacy groups and institutional landowners. As urban housing costs rise, critics are increasingly targeting large entities that hold significant property portfolios while advocating for the poor.
Del Río said the statement during an appearance on the program El Intermedio on La Sexta [1]. The broadcast took place on June 9, 2026 [1]. During the segment, she urged the Pope to "barra la especulación de su propia casa," which translates to stopping the speculation in his own house [1].
Del Río said that the Church's internal financial practices contradict its public messaging on social issues. She suggested that the institutional Church contributes to the very housing problems it often decries from the pulpit. The spokesperson specifically targeted the gap between the Pope's rhetoric on poverty and the Church's role as a global landowner [1].
"Si el papa habla de pobreza, que primero mire quiénes la están generando en el seno de su propia Iglesia," del Río said [1]. This translates to a request for the Pope to first look at who is generating poverty within the heart of his own Church if he intends to speak on the subject [1].
The Sindicato de Inquilinas has frequently campaigned against the commodification of housing in Spain. By bringing the critique to a national platform like La Sexta, the union aims to pressure the Vatican to align its asset management with its moral teachings [1].
“Stop the speculation of his own house”
This confrontation reflects a broader trend of secular housing movements challenging the moral authority of religious institutions that maintain vast real estate holdings. By framing the Church's property management as a driver of poverty, advocates are attempting to shift the conversation from charitable giving to structural divestment from speculative markets.
