Social housing instead of speculation: Balearic government expropriates vacant apartments
The Balearic government has made good on its threat to expropriate vacant apartments from investment funds and banks in the future. At the beginning of March, the governor signed the first resolution to claim a total of 56 currently unused apartments from large property owners as social housing for seven years. During this time, the government will rent the vacant apartments to the socially disadvantaged. The property owners are compensated for this "third-party use", but with a rent that is significantly below the market value. According to the state government, the average rent on the islands is 624 euros per month, but only 391 euros is paid to the dispossessed homeowners.
The state government wants to kill two birds with one stone with this measure. Firstly, to increase the supply of affordable rental apartments for a growing number of families with below-average incomes and secondly, to put a stop to speculation with vacant residential properties. Palma City Council has also announced in recent weeks that it will expropriate apartments that have been vacant for years in order to house socially disadvantaged families. However, the town hall does not have the necessary legal powers to decide this on its own.
Affected by these expropriations are exclusively owners who own at least ten apartments that have also been vacant for at least two years.
