Florence’s ‘Maricarmen’: 94-year-old faces losing her home of 60 years as rent nearly triples

Florentine pensioner faces a rent increase she cannot afford

Poinews.com – A 94-year-old resident of Florence may be forced to leave the apartment that has been her home for more than six decades after being told that her monthly rent could rise from €450 to €1,200.

Franca’s current agreement ends in February. Her family says renewing it at the proposed price would be beyond her means, despite the apartment being central to nearly her entire adult life. She has lived in the 70-square-metre flat since the early 1960s, first with her husband and later as the place where her daughter grew up.

The case has drawn comparisons with María del Carmen Abascal, widely known as Maricarmen. The 87-year-old became a prominent figure in Spain’s housing-rights debate after a sharp increase in rent preceded her eviction from her Madrid home. She died in hospital days later.

A home shaped by family history

For Franca, the apartment represents far more than a tenancy. Its rooms contain photographs of her grandchildren, paintings of Florence’s narrow streets and keepsakes from her daughter’s wedding. Her daughter says it is the only place where her mother truly feels at home.

That sense of continuity is especially significant for an elderly person facing the prospect of a move. Leaving a long-standing home can mean losing familiar routines, neighbours, nearby services and the physical surroundings that have anchored daily life for years.

The building includes several apartments under the ownership of one landlord. It previously housed mainly Florentine families, with some residents having remained for generations. The resident mix has changed over time, but Franca’s daughter understands that the flats are still rented as ordinary homes rather than converted into short-term holiday accommodation.

She nevertheless believes the property’s management is seeking much higher income from the residential units.

“They phoned me to tell me they would not renew the contract for my mother. The contract was renewed every two years. They let me know that, for her to stay there, the rent would have to go up to €1,200 a month. But how can you ask for that kind of money from a 94-year-old pensioner?”

Income leaves little room for a higher payment

Franca receives a minimum pension along with her late husband’s survivor’s pension. Her daughter has chosen not to be identified because she has not yet found a way to tell her mother about the possible loss of the home.

“My mother gets a minimum pension and my father’s survivor’s pension. If she had to pay €1,200 in rent, she would be left with practically nothing to live on, not even enough to eat.”

The proposed change would add €750 to the monthly housing bill, taking the rent to almost three times its current level. For households on fixed retirement income, such increases can quickly turn a manageable budget into an impossible one, particularly when food, utilities, healthcare and other essential costs must also be covered.

The family does not argue that the rent should be permanently frozen at its current amount. Franca’s daughter says she would be willing to help finance a more limited increase if that allowed her mother to stay in the apartment through her final years.

“We could manage a small increase, I could help her out. But going from €450 to €1,200 is something else altogether. It is an impossible amount. And what pains me is that there was not even any chance to open a proper negotiation, to try to meet halfway.”

She has contacted Sunia, the tenants’ union, in search of assistance. The next months will be crucial, with the current contract due to expire in February and the family seeking a solution that would avoid uprooting Franca from the place she has known for most of her life.

Pressure on tenants across Tuscany

Franca’s situation comes during a broader period of housing pressure in Tuscany. The region recorded 2,427 eviction orders in 2025, highlighting the scale of insecurity faced by tenants when leases end, rents rise or household finances no longer meet housing costs.

Florence accounts for roughly 35% of enforcement requests filed across Tuscany. The city’s share underscores why individual disputes over rent and lease renewals resonate beyond a single household: for many tenants, a change in contract terms can determine whether they are able to remain in their community.

For Franca’s family, the issue is immediate and personal. The apartment is not simply an address, but the setting of a marriage, a childhood, family celebrations and decades of memories. As February approaches, the family is trying to secure the chance for a 94-year-old woman to remain in the Florence home she has occupied since the 1960s.