Pressure on Junts to regulate seasonal rentals in Congress

BarcelonaA maneuver to expedite the seasonal rental law and shift all the pressure onto Junts. The investiture partners of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez unblocked the bulk of the bill's draft on Tuesday, anticipating its approval in committee next week and its subsequent referral to the Senate—a step that does not require Junts' support. This will allow all eyes to be on Junts once the bill returns to the lower house due to the PP's veto. fragile relationship with the Spanish government And on an issue where Carles Puigdemont's party has fought hard, especially because they have protested against the proposed regulations on room rentals. Weeks of negotiations have been necessary to unblock the proposed law to prevent fraud in seasonal and room rentals with the approval of the committee's report. According to the Socialists and Sumar, it is an "important" step towards solving the housing crisis. The agreement was reached thanks to the support of the PSOE and the PNV for the proponents of the legislation – Sumar, ERC, EH Bildu, Podemos, and the BNG. Both groups jointly signed the compromise amendments. The objective of the law is to put an end to the "massive" fraud in the housing law used to circumvent the rent cap in high-demand areas by exploiting the seasonal rental market, which allows for the perpetuation of temporary rentals and discretionary price increases. Left-wing parties and the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) intend to approve reforms to certain articles of the urban lease law so that price caps also apply to seasonal and room rental contracts. According to sources at the Ministry of Finance, the market needs to be "regulated" to prevent "abuse" and safeguard the right to housing, since, in their view, "a predatory market that exploits families and devours their wages cannot be allowed." They are also confident that "this cross-party agreement can finally be approved" with the support of Junts per Catalunya (Together for Catalonia).

The points of the amendments and the role of Junts per Catalunya

"Our vote in Madrid will always be in favor of Catalonia, and you'll see it reflected on the voting screen." This is the mantra that Junts continually repeats after its break with Pedro Sánchez, who has been left without a functioning majority in Congress. However, this law is not one of the fifty or so pieces of legislation that Carles Puigdemont's party announced they would block in the lower house. But it is a particularly sensitive one due to Junts' liberal stance. In fact, they have repeatedly expressed their strong opposition to the rent cap and also criticize the fact that room rentals are treated as if they were rentals of entire homes.

In any case, the amendments to the law state that seasonal rentals and room rentals would also be affected by the limits, making it more clearly defined so that only a clear justification is required for this type of rental, suitable, for example, for profiles such as researchers or students.

Among other things, the law stipulates that temporary rental contracts "must expressly state the reason for the tenant's temporary relocation," which must be "verifiable," with the burden of proof falling on the landlord. If the reason is not verified in the contract, it will automatically be considered a long-term rental. Furthermore, to reduce fraud between temporary and long-term rentals, and between temporary and tourist rentals, temporary rentals must exceed 31 days but not exceed one year, while tourist apartments cannot exceed 31 days. Thus, if a rental exceeds one year, it will be considered a long-term rental.

Regarding room rental agreements, the sum of the rents agreed upon in any partial contracts simultaneously in force for the same dwelling cannot exceed the rent for the entire dwelling, which would thus be better protected. In this respect, the need to improve the living conditions of room rentals is also established, specifying that "minimum standards of hygiene and ventilation" must be met, along with a guarantee of sufficient common areas and restrooms. This entire list of points will not be implemented unless Junts opposes it.