Thanks for another well-researched article. I hope you're right about the possible increase in long-term furnished rentals. We had real problems finding apartments to rent in Porto and Lisbon/Cascais. Your points about the tax inequity are spot on. It should be no surprise that the short-term rentals increased when they were effectively incentivized by the lower tax rate. Anticipating the unintended consequences is something that legislators around the world seem unable to do well.
Excellent post. Love getting into the nitty gritty details of this. Also, I love your digressions, in this case DeSantis. Clearly you have not stopped following the news in the country you left behind because of the big right turn it took in 2016. You made a good decision then.
AirB&B's have been a serious problem everywhere. These units are often unlicensed, located in residential neighborhoods unaccustomed to such visitors, attract some who have no consideration for their neighbors regarding noise, traffic an parking. Many municipalities are struggling to come up with rules and regs to manage the impact of these "pop up" accommodations on their communities.
Good news. I am sad to see the destruction of communities world wide from over use of AirBnB. Boise has been negatively effected by this. It's nearly impossible to find a reasonably priced apartment here now. And when I finally make the leap, I shall look forward to benefitting from this new ruling. I commend the Portuguese government for considering the larger social picture over immediate individual, personal benefit.
I hope you don´t be upset with my comment but I must disagree concerning the tax matter. Actually, it´s not correct to compare short and long term rentals because they are different. On this one you do not have any obligations than keeping the building suitable to be livable. On the other one, besides that, you have to pay the bills of water, eletricity, gaz, internet and assure that the house/flat is clean to receive the guests. So, taking that in account, believe me, it´s fair that there is a inferior tax rate for de short term rental. In my opinion, the solution for the lack of long term rental can not be banning the legal short term one.
Nevertheless, I enjoy reading your texts and wish you all the best!
I have to agree, Airbnb is destroying neighborhoods all over the world. The uber rich can buy 10 properties, then oursouce the labor to shady companies who provide poor service and rip off customers. These homes could be used for locals. Or even for individuals to make some income, but its gone way too far. I hope the ban them all entirely. Hotels are now better value anyway.
Another couple of points - hotels in the Old City of Lisbon far outnumber AL in relation to the number of beds, and the physical space they occupy. Old buildings refurbished into new hotels that were once residential apartments have diminished residences in the Old City to a greater degree than AL. These hotels are owned by the super rich who have friends in high places, and hotels continue to be built at a rapid rate in Lisbon - seemingly under the radar. You’ll find the media conspicuously silent about this! 🤔 Most AL owners are in fact Portuguese families who had family property and took advantage of the AL opportunity. It is an important revenue source for them and justified. International investment was driven by property developers and estate agents who bought low and priced with extremely high profit margins and laughed all the way to the bank. Needing to qualify for Golden Visa euro value threshold also caused property prices to increase dramatically - foreigners requested prices of property to be increased to qualify. These are some of the factors which caused property prices to increase and resulted in more AL properties. It seems there’s been an oversight of government policies as far as housing is concerned. It would be interesting to establish just how many AL’s in Lisbon are owned by Portuguese citizens. Airbnb in Portugal is the diversion (in my view) away from the ever encroaching hotel industry and the failure of housing policy. Sure the success of Airbnb has some drawbacks, but there is much support for retaining AL in Portugal by the Portuguese. Various political parties have different opinions but the truth is they are a key revenue driver for GDP. And an AL license can’t legally be revoked once granted. There’s also electioneering to consider...🤥
I find it strange that an investment property is categorized the same as a primary residence. Someone buying or renting properties for Airbnb only is one thing. A person renting out where they live is another. The former will definitely take away from the long term rental market. The latter would not. These laws need some common sense.
Nancy,
Thanks for another well-researched article. I hope you're right about the possible increase in long-term furnished rentals. We had real problems finding apartments to rent in Porto and Lisbon/Cascais. Your points about the tax inequity are spot on. It should be no surprise that the short-term rentals increased when they were effectively incentivized by the lower tax rate. Anticipating the unintended consequences is something that legislators around the world seem unable to do well.
Excellent post. Love getting into the nitty gritty details of this. Also, I love your digressions, in this case DeSantis. Clearly you have not stopped following the news in the country you left behind because of the big right turn it took in 2016. You made a good decision then.
It will be interesting to see if the prices start to shift in the condo market due to this new ruling.
AirB&B's have been a serious problem everywhere. These units are often unlicensed, located in residential neighborhoods unaccustomed to such visitors, attract some who have no consideration for their neighbors regarding noise, traffic an parking. Many municipalities are struggling to come up with rules and regs to manage the impact of these "pop up" accommodations on their communities.
Having a coffee in the VRSA plaza when your email popped up! Timely experience!😎
Good news. I am sad to see the destruction of communities world wide from over use of AirBnB. Boise has been negatively effected by this. It's nearly impossible to find a reasonably priced apartment here now. And when I finally make the leap, I shall look forward to benefitting from this new ruling. I commend the Portuguese government for considering the larger social picture over immediate individual, personal benefit.
I hope you don´t be upset with my comment but I must disagree concerning the tax matter. Actually, it´s not correct to compare short and long term rentals because they are different. On this one you do not have any obligations than keeping the building suitable to be livable. On the other one, besides that, you have to pay the bills of water, eletricity, gaz, internet and assure that the house/flat is clean to receive the guests. So, taking that in account, believe me, it´s fair that there is a inferior tax rate for de short term rental. In my opinion, the solution for the lack of long term rental can not be banning the legal short term one.
Nevertheless, I enjoy reading your texts and wish you all the best!
Another useful article! I’m arrived in Tavira yesterday and am slowly heading your way.
See the Pickle ball comments any similar options for ping pong?
Can you suggest someone to contact for long term rentals in the VRSA area. We wanted to look at the possibility of D7 visa.
Thanks
I have to agree, Airbnb is destroying neighborhoods all over the world. The uber rich can buy 10 properties, then oursouce the labor to shady companies who provide poor service and rip off customers. These homes could be used for locals. Or even for individuals to make some income, but its gone way too far. I hope the ban them all entirely. Hotels are now better value anyway.
VRSA is small, hence there aren’t as many accommodations there.
Another couple of points - hotels in the Old City of Lisbon far outnumber AL in relation to the number of beds, and the physical space they occupy. Old buildings refurbished into new hotels that were once residential apartments have diminished residences in the Old City to a greater degree than AL. These hotels are owned by the super rich who have friends in high places, and hotels continue to be built at a rapid rate in Lisbon - seemingly under the radar. You’ll find the media conspicuously silent about this! 🤔 Most AL owners are in fact Portuguese families who had family property and took advantage of the AL opportunity. It is an important revenue source for them and justified. International investment was driven by property developers and estate agents who bought low and priced with extremely high profit margins and laughed all the way to the bank. Needing to qualify for Golden Visa euro value threshold also caused property prices to increase dramatically - foreigners requested prices of property to be increased to qualify. These are some of the factors which caused property prices to increase and resulted in more AL properties. It seems there’s been an oversight of government policies as far as housing is concerned. It would be interesting to establish just how many AL’s in Lisbon are owned by Portuguese citizens. Airbnb in Portugal is the diversion (in my view) away from the ever encroaching hotel industry and the failure of housing policy. Sure the success of Airbnb has some drawbacks, but there is much support for retaining AL in Portugal by the Portuguese. Various political parties have different opinions but the truth is they are a key revenue driver for GDP. And an AL license can’t legally be revoked once granted. There’s also electioneering to consider...🤥
I find it strange that an investment property is categorized the same as a primary residence. Someone buying or renting properties for Airbnb only is one thing. A person renting out where they live is another. The former will definitely take away from the long term rental market. The latter would not. These laws need some common sense.