PROPERTY SEARCH
Could Alicante really ban foreigners from buying property?
The suggested ban for non-nationals would cost the Alicante economy an estimated 5.6 billion
A proposal by senator Carles Mulet to prohibit the sale of property to overseas buyers in the province of Alicante for the next three years has been condemned as “absurd” by detractors. The politician has called for a reform of the Housing Law to control the abuse of vulture funds and reduce the number of homes being snapped up by foreigners to rent out to tourists, since this squeezes residents out of the market.
The amendment has little support, however, since it could mean a possible loss in revenue of a whopping 5.6 billion euros. This figure is based on data from last year, when 31,691 residential properties were bought and sold by foreigners at an average price of 175,636.25 euros, with around 30% of this pumped back into Alicante’s coffers in the form of taxes.
At a national level, last week left-wing party Unidas Podemos failed to gain approval for an amendment that would limit the number of tourist rentals on offer in the busiest and most stressed destinations. If passed, this would have included major cities like Barcelona, Valencia and Malaga but also holiday favourites such as Torrevieja, Benidorm, Marbella and Mijas.
Already this year, overseas demand saw Alicante house sales soar to the highest level in 16 years; in fact, interest from non-nationals in houses and apartments is more than double that of the other two provinces in the Valencian Community.
In response to the proposed ban on foreign buyers, president of the tourist housing association (Aptur-CV), Miguel Ángel Sotillos, described the senator’s approach as “absurd”, assuring that “it would produce the opposite effect to the one intended”.
The government in the Balearic Islands has been trying to push through a similar scheme since last year, but whether on the islands or in mainland Spain, such a move could easily be considered discrimination and would have to be approved by the European Union.
Image: Pixabay
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