“This amount (which no one knows the origin of) is clearly out of touch with Portuguese reality. How can one claim, with utmost audacity, that a monthly rent of 2,300 euros is moderate, in a country where the average salary does not exceed 1,281 euros and where 900,000 workers (20.4% of the total) earn the minimum wage?” questioned the trade union federation.
The government has decided to discontinue the concept of affordable rent and introduce the concept of moderate rent, with values ranging from 400 to 2,300 euros, without municipal limits, to ensure transparency, clarified the Minister of Housing, Pinto Luz, last Thursday.
The executive stated that this range allows for the inclusion of all rents, although it acknowledges that in the districts of Lisbon and Porto, there are rents above the defined maximum.
These values consider a household with a monthly income of around 5,750 euros.
The CGTP argued today that replacing the concept of affordable rent with moderate rent shows that the solutions proposed by the government will “not even remotely solve the housing crisis.”
The trade union remarked that the primary issue faced by citizens is the inability to bear the costs of housing rents.
In this regard, it stated that offering tax benefits for rents that can reach 2,300 euros does not contribute to solving the problem or facilitating access to housing for those with no income.
This measure, as highlighted, will exacerbate the problem, encouraging the trend of rent increases “to the limit, to fully benefit from the tax reduction.”
Furthermore, the CGTP emphasized that, of all the measures presented, only one is aimed at tenants, specifically the increase in the deduction of rent expenses in IRS (Personal Income Tax).
“What is the use of annual tax savings, when there’s not enough money to pay the rent at the end of each month?” it asked.
The trade union federation therefore demands that bank profits bear the increased costs of families “pushed towards buying their own home,” a national housing program be created, and evictions be suspended.
The trade union also calls for the expansion of the public housing stock at affordable prices, rent value control measures with maximum caps, as well as changes to the urban lease regime.
The government announced a set of measures for housing rent last Thursday.
Concerning families with moderate rent, it determined that the deduction is 15% up to a maximum of 900 euros by 2026, with this limit rising to 1,000 euros by 2027.
For landlords, a reduction in the IRS rate (Personal Income Tax) is foreseen, from 25% to 10% in lease contracts of moderate-rent housing.
