The Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, said that the Government decided on measures that “bring justice and moderation” and that “repeal errors”.
“We revoked a series of regulatory prohibitions and changed others, which had the consequence of making precarious or affecting past licenses of people who had invested in the last decade, hoping to have returns in the long term and that this return, this confidence in the investment, had been betrayed by the action of the State”, he highlighted.
One of the measures, according to the minister, is the revocation of a fixation of the aging coefficient, “which in practice had the consequence of increasing the IMI of properties in local accommodation”.
The executive counts on the help of municipalities, which will be able to make the rules and monitor their application taking into account the reality in their territory, to allow for “finding different, but more harmonious, situations”.
Municipalities may have a “regulatory role, but also as a mediator in conflicts” between owners within properties in horizontal ownership and establish the conditions for issuing and registering new licenses.
Leitão Amaro stressed that these revocations, particularly “of the license situation”, do not mean unlimited deregulation of the market where local accommodation operates.
The minister considered that the previous government, a socialist one, “chose the AL as an unfair target to try to excuse its incapacity which led to the worsening of the housing crisis”, while the current executive replaced this “punitive vision with a balanced vision”, which recognises that there are areas of greater urban pressure and greater tourist pressure.
No doubt the fat cat politicians have their fingers in the till likely benefiting from the ownership of such properties.
The fact is short term holiday rentals have gutted commuties in cities towns and everywhere else in Portugal.
Every week or even every few days new strangers turn up with little regard for the neighbourhood that have the privilege of being able to stay in.
The long term rental market is as good a dead.
Housing out of reach of many Portuguese citizens.
Portugal has become a giant souless bunch of hotet rooms and is over run with yobs on holiday.
By James from Algarve on 28 May 2024, 17:36
I agree entirely with James. However, in order to make legal longterm contracts for locals, which are secure on both sides, via a lawyer, to basic rent one must then include bills ( because if bills are put in the tenants name you can't get them out or cut of services if they don't pay) and add the 25% taken by finances, so a room at €325/m becomes €660. This then becomes prohibitive to a local on €700/m wages. For many landlords, renting via AL is a much cheaper and more profitable option.
By Annie from Algarve on 29 May 2024, 06:16
More bitter comments from haters and losers who themselves can't afford to invest in property, and so wish to prevent others from doing so. The politics of envy, and the application of the lowest common denominator. Should we also ban the sale of cars or fridge freezers on the basis that it's greed and some people can't afford them?
By Billy Bissett from Porto on 30 May 2024, 11:09
A government minister refers to "errors!" I had to read that twice.
By Marco from Lisbon on 01 Jun 2024, 09:44