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For many families in the Region of Murcia, a broken washing machine or an unexpected car repair is enough to tip the budget over the edge. The latest Living Conditions Survey from Spain’s National Statistics Institute shows that 47.9% of the population, more than 760,000 people, could not cover an unforeseen bill in 2025 without turning to loans, overdrafts or instalment payments, up from 42% the year before.

 

Behind these numbers is a wider picture of fragile household finances. The share of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion, measured by the European AROPE index, inched up to 32.5% in 2025. Put simply, almost one in three residents is living close to the edge. Murcia remains the third region in Spain with the highest rate, only behind Andalusia and Castilla La Mancha, while the national average is 25.7%. Looking just at income, 26.7% of people are classed as at risk of poverty, the second highest figure in the country and well above the Spanish average of 19.5%.

 

There are also clear signs that many households are going without basics that others take for granted. The survey reports that 42.5% of people in Murcia cannot afford a week’s holiday away from home each year. Around a third, 33.2%, say they cannot replace worn out or broken furniture, and 19% cannot keep their homes at a comfortable temperature. Some 10.2% cannot afford a personal computer, 4.7% do not have the means to own a car, and 4% cannot pay for a meal with meat, chicken or fish at least every two days. Overall, 9.6% of residents are considered to be living in severe material and social deprivation, above the Spanish average of 8.1%.

 

Work is a big part of the story. Around 10% of the population live in households where adults of working age have only managed to work 20% or less of their possible hours over the previous year. That is about 160,000 people in families facing very patchy employment or long spells of joblessness, and it marks a jump of more than four percentage points in just twelve months.

 

The regional Department of Social Policy says high inflation has squeezed those on lower incomes hardest. Officials point out that price rises over the last five years, without similar wage growth, have cut purchasing power by up to 7.73 percentage points. At the same time, they stress that the AROPE rate has fallen by 12 points since 2014, when it stood at 44.5%, and describe Murcia as having “the most socially focused budget in Spain”, with around 64.3% of spending going to health, education and social services.

 

The recently approved Regional Strategy to Combat Poverty and Social Exclusion is, they say, the roadmap that will guide efforts to support those struggling most up to 2028.

 

 

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