Sanchez aims to restrict non-EU property buyers to tackle Spain’s housing crisis
Madrid: So, it looks like Pedro Sanchez is making some big moves regarding property ownership in Spain. He’s proposing to ban non-EU foreigners, including Brits, from buying homes unless they actually live there. This comes after he suggested a hefty tax on these property deals, which could go up to 100%!
Why the sudden change? Well, there’s a lot of frustration in Spain over skyrocketing property prices and a serious lack of affordable housing. In Madrid alone, rents have shot up by about 60% over the last decade. Sanchez mentioned that many foreigners are just buying homes to speculate, which isn’t helping locals at all.
In 2023, around 27,000 homes were bought by non-residents, and that’s just a small slice of the overall market. The opposition party pointed out that this only made up about 4% of all property transactions. But still, it’s a significant number, especially when you consider that Brits were the top foreign buyers last year.
Interestingly, Spain had already scrapped its Golden Visa program, which allowed wealthy non-EU buyers to get residency by investing in real estate. Now, those who already have it can keep it, but no new visas will be issued.
There’s also talk of higher taxes and stricter rules for tourist apartments, which many blame for pushing up rents and reducing available homes for locals. Sanchez is looking at models from Denmark and Canada, where similar restrictions have been put in place to make housing more affordable.
However, not everyone is on board with these changes. Some British nationals living in Spain feel that these new rules will only make things tougher for them. They’ve already faced challenges due to Brexit, and now this could be another hurdle.
Experts are weighing in too, saying that while the intention might be good, putting up barriers could hurt the market overall. After all, foreign buyers contribute to the economy by creating jobs and boosting local businesses.
