The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, announced on Monday a 100% exemption from personal income tax (IRPF) for homeowners who put their homes up for rent according to the benchmark index.
He has also advanced a new PERTE with European funds dedicated to the construction of houses and other measures such as an increase in taxes for non-EU buyers. In an event at the Railway Museum attended by a good part of the socialist ministers, Sanchez has unveiled a package of a dozen measures to make affordable access to housing, especially among young people, the main challenge facing societies in the West, as he has indicated. Thus, he pointed out that he is going to propose to the Congress of Deputies a tax exemption on the entire Personal Income Tax “for those owners who rent their homes according to the reference index, without the need for them to be located in areas declared to be under stress”, he said. The President was in favor of limiting the purchase of housing by non-EU foreigners not residing in Spain, “increasing the tax burden that they will have to pay in case of purchase up to 100% of the value of the property”. He also announced other measures such as the transfer by the General State Administration to the public housing company of more than 3,300 homes and two million square meters of residential land to create “thousands and thousands” of new homes.
Guarantees for the collection of rent
On the other hand, Sanchez announced the creation of a system of public guarantees that will ensure owners the collection of the rental income, while offering the tenant a greater supply at an affordable price and fairness in access. It will be in operation this year and will begin to be applied to landlords who rent to people under 35 years of age. This system has already been successfully implemented in France, according to Sánchez. In addition, a new program for the rehabilitation of empty homes for affordable rent will be launched. Aid will be granted to those who refurbish an apartment to make it available for affordable rent for at least 5 years. In addition, the Government proposes to condition the tax advantages of the socimis to the promotion of affordable rental housing and thus avoid that those companies that are only dedicated to the promotion of short-term rental housing pay less taxes “than ordinary citizens” when buying the same home, according to Sanchez complained. The president also announced the launch of a PERTE “for the innovation and modernization of industrialized and modular construction”, with the aim of building houses in less time and at a lower cost. It is going to be carried out in the province of Valencia to contribute to the reconstruction of the economic fabric after the DANA that devastated the province last October.
Assignment to the public housing company
The President has shown himself to be in favor of limiting the purchase of housing by non-EU foreigners not residing in Spain, “increasing the tax burden that they will have to pay in the event of a purchase up to 100% of the value of the property”. He also announced other measures such as the transfer by the General State Administration to the public housing company of more than 3,300 homes and two million square meters of residential land to create “thousands and thousands” of new homes. In addition, 13,000 Sareb homes will be incorporated immediately, and another 17,000 more, progressively. This new public housing company, whose creation was announced by Sánchez at the 41st Federal Congress of the PSOE at the beginning of December, will have “priority” in the purchase of housing and land, in addition to the right of the Autonomous Regions, as he pointed out. Likewise, he added, he is going to “shield” State subsidized housing, guaranteeing by law that it will maintain its public ownership “indefinitely”.
