The measure was one of a dozen unveiled on Monday by the country’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, as the government seeks to quell mounting anger over housing costs that have soared far beyond the reach of many in Spain.
Sánchez sought to underline the global nature of the challenge, citing housing prices that had swelled 48% in the past decade across Europe, far outpacing household incomes.
“The west faces a decisive challenge: to not become a society divided into two classes, the rich landlords and poor tenants,” he told an economic forum in Madrid.
The proposed measures include expanding the supply of social housing, offering incentives to those who renovate and rent out empty properties at affordable prices and cracking down on seasonal rentals. In Spain just 2.5% of housing is set aside for social housing, a figure that lags drastically behind countries such as France and the Netherlands, said Sánchez.
At some point you wonder, why not just prevent them from owning homes if they’re not citizens? Kick em out and tell them to come back when they’re EU citizens, problem solved.
So immigrants all have to be renters? I don’t know the wait times in Spain, but in the US, it can take 20 years to become a citizen despite being on long-term visa or already a permanent resident. Meanwhile, citizens are allowed to engage in exploitation freely?
That’s a separate US issue.
Money. Foreign investment also appreciates the value of domestic property owners as well. Aka fuck you I got mine syndrome.
Yeah bur a 100% tax is tantamount to a ban.
Just for those not wealthy enough to not care
Even wealthy people aren’t going to buy a home they can only sell for half the price they paid.
I think you underestimate what it is to have so much money that you don’t have to care about how it’s spent. A billionaire could spend a million a day for three years and still be left with millions because of the interest they make.
The number of people who have so much money that they don’t have to care about how it’s spent are infinitesimal.
That number is increasing
That’s not how wealth concentration works.
Its quite clever way to do it though. Straight out ban would easily rise more opposition because it seems more severe and this way there might be some income too so its likely easier to suggest.
I suspect it’s a legal thing.
Banning foreign ownership probably contradicts some centuries old precept of international law.