Finally a (small) step to regulate seasonal rentals in Catalonia and Barcelona. A year after refusing to control this market , the PSC has agreed to a pact with ERC, the Comuns and the CUP to include the regulation of this type of rentals in the decree on housing that will be voted this Wednesday in the Parliament.
The agreement involves several important developments that we now explain, and although it does not eliminate this type of rentals, it does impose certain restrictions that can help control the uncontrolled expansion that they were living until now.
Seasonal rentals yes, not uncontrolled prices
As we said, seasonal rental contracts -those designed for short stays, vacations or temporary jobs, for a maximum of 11 months- are not going to disappear. However, with the new regulation, they will have to adjust to the price limit set by law, so that they will no longer live in the legal vacuum that invited the owners to rent the apartments seasonally (to expats or locals) for prices that were not regulated.
In addition, it will be mandatory that the contract clearly states whether it is a regular or seasonal rental, and the tenant will have to prove that his regular residence is another one.
This, obviously, does not prevent cheating, but it can help tenants from Barcelona to avoid being at a clear disadvantage compared to foreign tenants with higher salaries. Of course, the insecurity of being “subjected” to temporary rentals of a maximum of 11 months could become the norm.
Another novelty affects shared apartments: the sum of the price of all the rooms rented in an apartment will not be able to exceed the maximum price that the whole apartment would have.
A corps of housing inspectors to control abuses
Another of the agreement’s major measures is the creation of the figure of the housing inspector, which will be incorporated into the Catalan Housing Rights Act. This body of inspectors will be able to review contracts, detect fraud or abusive clauses and propose sanctions. They will be able to carry out both documentary and face-to-face controls.
On the other hand, the agreement also extends the protection of VPO (Official Protection Housing) apartments located in stressed areas such as Barcelona. This extends the time during which these apartments cannot be transferred to the free market, with protection periods ranging from 10 to 30 years depending on the type of housing and the land on which it is built.
In addition, in these areas, only people registered in the registry of housing applicants will be able to buy subsidized apartments.
With this measure, Catalonia seeks to put an end to real estate speculation with temporary rental apartments.