PSD unveiled on Tuesday a set of ten housing diplomas that include a broad subsidy to support rent, government guarantees to help young people buy, and general tax breaks in the sector.
Among the measures presented on Tuesday – seven bills, one discussion and two recommendations to the government – there is, for example, the JSD proposal that the state could provide a public guarantee that replaces the “down payment” when buying a house for young people under 35, up to a maximum of 10 % of the value of the property (which cannot exceed 250 thousand euros).
Another diploma proposes the creation of a rental subsidy that households with income up to the sixth pillar of the IRS (about 38 thousand euros) and an effort level equal to or greater than 33% can apply for. The subsidy will correspond to a quarter of the cost of the rent, which will increase to a third when the tenant turns 35.
PSD also proposes to reduce the withholding tax on property income on rental housing (from 28% to 23%, with a larger reduction for longer contracts), to exempt real estate sales from IMT up to 168 thousand euros, to increase, from the point of view of the IRS, deductions from payment rent and interest on mortgage loans, as well as the application from 2024 to 2030 of the minimum VAT rate of 6% on works and services for the construction and reconstruction of residential buildings.
To reduce the impact of higher interest rates on the cost of home loans, PSD proposes to change the terms of their repayment – reducing the monthly payment – with partial doubt at the end of the contract, providing the state with a public guarantee of the revised amount.
With regard to vacant property, in addition to the identification of this heritage by the Customs Service, the Social Democrats propose to create a program of cooperation between the state and local authorities for the use of vacant public heritage: this would be for the municipalities to identify buildings owned by the state that are not in use and propose (on their own or jointly with private individuals) projects for their use, passing them into administrative ownership if the state does not respond within a short period of time.
On February 14, the party presented a set of 40 proposals on the issue, which were converted into legislative initiatives on Tuesday, presented within 45 minutes at a press conference by six social democrats, including vice president António Leitao Amaro and parliamentary leader Joaquim Miranda Sarmento.
Other measures presented by PSD include strengthening student housing, simplifying licensing and providing more flexible use of land for living (strengthening screening mechanisms), strengthening tenancy guarantees, which would include “reviewing and accelerating dispute resolution mechanisms or tax incentives.” for the division of an indivisible inheritance.
The Social Democrats are also submitting a consultative draft for an independent study to be carried out to assess the impact of changes in the rental regime over the past ten years – by independent experts chosen by a two-thirds majority of Parliament – and to be completed by the first half of 2024.
In two resolutions, PSD recommends that the government “accelerate the use of funds from the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR) for housing” and promote “innovative housing and accommodation solutions” such as housing cooperatives or modular housing.
The diplomas will be debated and voted on in Parliament on March 15, according to the schedule set by the PSD.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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