Barcelona City Council is looking for a formula to limit the proliferation of seasonal rentals that escape the price cap of the Housing Law. The municipal government, in the hands of the PSC, and the Communes have announced this Thursday an agreement to undertake a modification of the General Metropolitan Plan (PGM) to prioritize permanent use leases and serve as a first step to limit monthly contracts.
This measure is also part of the budget negotiation between PSC and Comuns. The latter had been demanding it and that is why both the Deputy Mayor for Urban Planning, Laia Bonet, and the Councilor for the Communes and former head of this area with Ada Colau, Janet Sanz, participated in the press conference to detail the measure.
However, to move forward you will need more support. And those of ERC, the most predictable partner, are not tied. The Republicans, who saw how the PSC overthrew in Parliament an initiative to also combat seasonal rentals, argue that the decree that the socialists rejected must first be resolved.
If the modification of the PGM is approved, something that is scheduled for the second quarter of 2025, the Barcelona council would thus anticipate the central government, which announced a mandatory registration for this type of contracts for the beginning of next year. “The regulation of seasonal rentals cannot wait any longer,” declared the socialist Bonet.
Currently, and although there are no official public figures regarding this type of contracts, they account for more than 50% of the advertisements on portals such as Idealista in Barcelona. It should be remembered that currently the use of seasonal leasing for tenants who actually live in the apartment permanently is a fraud.
What is not clear is how these rentals will be limited. In this sense, what is sought with the modification of the General Metropolitan Plan is to “prioritize” permanent housing over temporary housing. This would serve, according to PSC and Comuns, to subsequently develop a more specific regulation, such as an ordinance, detailing whether and under what conditions these rentals are allowed. While Bonet spoke of regulation and limitation, Sanz directly defended prohibition.
In any case, the changes in urban planning regulations would serve to specify that habitual or permanent housing and that for temporary use, and open the door to limiting, restricting or prohibiting the latter. The intention is that the restrictions can be by districts. The modification also includes that the permanent rental of rooms entitles residents to access common services.
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