“There is no doubt that building more homes is the great solution to the problem,” stated Mariana Leitão to reporters during a campaign event in Caldas da Rainha, Leiria district, for the local elections on October 12.
In Caldas da Rainha, alongside the local structure, the liberal leader used the case of vacant properties in the city center as an example of the errors in public housing policies.
“In recent decades, we have built far fewer homes than in previous decades,” she explained, adding that “obviously, when there is less construction, prices tend to rise.”
For the rental market, immediate solutions are required “because construction takes time,” and it is “essential to also ensure that we create incentives for landlords to want to put their homes on the market,” Leitão added.
Furthermore, “we cannot continue to witness these situations where there are vacant properties, completely closed with no one living in them, where people could indeed be living,” said the liberal leader, pointing out the three properties identified in Caldas da Rainha that belong to the municipality.
“There is a structural problem in the country right now, and it is not new; it has been deepening over a long time. It is the problem of housing, where people find it increasingly difficult to find homes to live in, whether due to high prices in purchasing or renting,” emphasized Mariana Leitão.
“This Government, a year ago, made grand promises to solve the problem but did not resolve anything because the measures went in the opposite direction,” the liberal leader continued.
Currently, the government proposes a series of measures that “in practice only bring more complexity and more bureaucracy,” instead of ensuring we “end ideological blindness.” The only solution to solve the problem is to create conditions for more supply, whether by building more houses, accelerating licensing processes, or reducing construction VAT to 6% for all properties, she argued.
In parallel, municipalities must “ensure the essential debureaucratization so that processes are faster, to promote confidence in the market, so that more investors also want to build,” she stated.
On the other hand, IL wants “a greater liberalization of the rental market, more flexibility so that people actually have the confidence to put their homes on the market, which is not happening these days.”
In Caldas da Rainha, “it is important for the municipality, which currently holds possession, to follow through with what it promised,” but “if it lacks that capability, then it should put the property on the market and let private individuals do what the Municipality is not managing to do.”
In Caldas da Rainha, IL presents sociologist Carlota Oliveira, marking the liberals’ first candidacy in a municipality held by an independent list that won the council four years ago and now has local PS support, while the PSD attempts to reclaim what was once a social-democratic stronghold.
