€700 luxury flats in the Balearics: Consubal flags scam wave

Today's essentials (5 key points)

• Consubal says a growing number of rental listings in the Balearic Islands look like fraud, with the scammers asking for a deposit before any viewing.
• Open-Meteo forecasts thunderstorms with hail in Palma on Sunday 4 October 2026, with a 65% chance of rain and highs of 29 degrees.
• A Reddit r/mallorca post has put the spotlight on the Nus de sa Corbata, the bend in the Tramuntana where the road passes over itself.
• At least three tents went up on Saturday night in Plaça de la Constitució in Maó, as part of nationwide protests over access to housing.
• Ultima Hora reports that Girona against Real Mallorca will go ahead on Sunday 4 October 2026 as scheduled, despite the storm battering Catalonia.

Today's essentials

€700 luxury flats in the Balearics: Consubal flags scam wave. Rental ads offering renovated, fully furnished three-bedroom flats in the Balearic Islands from €700 a month are very likely scams, according to the consumer association Consubal, which went public with the warning on Sunday 4 October 2026, as reported by Menorca's Es Diari.

The listings are built to be irresistible. They promise spacious homes, completely refurbished and decorated down to the last detail, with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living and dining room and a fitted kitchen, at a rent far below anything on the current Balearic market. According to Consubal, the pattern is always the same: an attractive ad draws lots of interest, and as soon as someone is ready to sign, they're asked for a holding fee, a reservation or a month's rent up front. Excuses to avoid an in-person viewing usually come with it.

Behind these offers there's often a landlord who doesn't exist, a flat that isn't actually available, or photos lifted from other property portals. Once the money has gone through, Consubal says, the so-called landlord disappears and the tenant loses their savings. The association, quoted by Forbes España, links the trend to the extreme difficulty of finding a home in the islands, which makes people more likely to grab an offer that looks too good to be true. The sources don't give a number of victims or a total amount lost, and Consubal hasn't said whether it has received actual complaints or is warning ahead of time.

If a listing makes you hesitate, a few real checks help. You can request a nota simple from the Registro de la Propiedad (it's available online through the Colegio de Registradores) to see who legally owns the property, and then compare that name with the person you're dealing with. If you've already paid or handed over documents, file a report (denuncia) with the Policía Nacional, either at a police station or through its online reporting system, or with the Guardia Civil in smaller towns. You can also contact Consubal itself, or the Balearic Government's consumer affairs service, to flag a suspicious ad.

Consubal's own advice comes down to six points: be wary of any rent well below the usual market price, confirm the owner's real identity, never pay in advance without guarantees, never send personal documents to strangers, keep every piece of evidence (ads, messages, receipts) and report the facts to the authorities.

What it means for you: if you're flat-hunting in Palma or anywhere else in the islands this autumn, treat any furnished three-bed at around €700 as a red flag. Don't pay anything until you've seen the flat in person and checked the owner's name against the property registry, and screenshot the ad before it vanishes.

Weather today

Storms and hail over Mallorca, grey skies in Ibiza. Palma is in for thunderstorms with hail on Sunday 4 October 2026, according to Open-Meteo, with temperatures between 22 and 29 degrees and a 65% chance of rain.

The wind stays light in the capital, peaking at 12 km/h, but the mix of warmth and storms calls for an umbrella and a fallback plan if you were heading to the beach. The rest of Mallorca looks much the same: Calvià expects storms with hail, a low of 21 and a high of 28 degrees, a 60% chance of rain and wind up to 10 km/h. Things are calmer on the other islands, with Sant Antoni de Portmany in Ibiza under overcast skies, between 23 and 26 degrees, a 33% chance of rain and the day's strongest breeze at up to 15 km/h. Light layers work everywhere, but in Mallorca keep car windows closed and don't park under trees if hail does fall.

Transport & traffic

• Nus de sa Corbata: the road that loops over itself. The Nus de sa Corbata, a stretch in the Serra de Tramuntana where the road curls round and passes over its own path, is getting fresh attention after a post on the r/mallorca subreddit. This tight loop is on the famous mountain road down to Sa Calobra, and it's one of the most photographed pieces of road engineering on the island. For drivers, it's a reminder that this route calls for patience: hairpins, narrow lanes and frequent coaches and cyclists. On a stormy day like Sunday 4 October 2026, wet tarmac makes it worth putting off unless you know the road well.

Local news to know

• Okuda mural turned into a rain slide. The rain has once again turned Okuda San Miguel's artwork in the West End of Sant Antoni de Portmany into an improvised slide for some tourists, reports the Periódico de Ibiza y Formentera.
• Girona v Mallorca goes ahead. Sunday's match between Girona and Real Mallorca, under threat because of the heavy storm hitting Catalonia, keeps its original date and kick-off time, Ultima Hora confirms.
• Magnitude 3.1 quake at sea, nobody felt it. A magnitude 3.1 earthquake was recorded at 7.36pm on Saturday 3 October 2026 in the sea between Catalonia and the Balearic Islands, causing no damage and going unfelt on land, according to Ultima Hora.

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