Latest news with #HousingMinistry
Local Spain
4 days ago
- Business
- Local Spain
Property purchases by foreign residents in Spain stall
Property purchases by foreign residents in Spain are stagnating, new Housing Ministry data shows. This follows efforts by the Spanish government in the last year to rebalance the property market in favour of locals amid skyrocketing prices, although the focus has been primarily on limiting non-resident foreigners. Resident foreigners make up a bigger proportion of foreign buyers than non-resident foreigners (58 percent in Q1 2024, according to Spain's General Council of Notaries), hence why the recent slowdown in purchases by this group is likely to be welcomed by Spanish authorities. The total value of property sales by foreigners residing in Spain reached almost €11.7 billion in 2024, representing a modest increase of just 0.4 percent compared to the same period the year before, according to the latest Housing and Land Observatory report published by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda. The majority of purchases made by foreigners resident in Spain last year were for second-hand properties. Of the €11.6 billion total spent in transactions in 2024, more than 90 percent were spent on pre-owned homes. The purchase of second-hand housing was predominant among those from France (87 percent bought pre-owned homes), Morocco (85.9 percent), Romania (85 percent), Argentina (85 percent), Ireland (83.9 percent) and Italy (83.5 percent). The largest share of purchases of new homes by foreigners were made by Belgian, Polish, Dutch and Swedish buyers. The figures indicate a short-term stagnation in the market, as the total spend remained virtually unchanged from 2023 and remains below the more than €14.5 billion recorded in 2018. But the purchase of homes by foreigners overall (resident and non-resident) still accounted for 19.1 percent of total transactions in 2024, standing at 122,118 units, 988 fewer than the previous year, government data shows. That means that almost 1 in 5 property purchases in Spain were carried out by foreigners, still a high figure but one that didn't increase in 2024. By origin, buyers from the UK accounted for 8.6 percent of the total, followed by those from Germany (6.7 percent), Morocco (5.7 percent) and France (5.4 percent). This stagnation comes amid attempts by the Spanish government to better regulate the housing market. The Socialist government of Pedro Sánchez recently ruffled feathers when it proposed slapping a 100 percent tax on property purchases by buyers who don't reside in Spain or the EU. This would essentially double the price for people who don't live in the EU and want to buy a second home in Spain. Even more radical was the proposal submitted by Catalan separatist party ERC to require actual foreign residents to apply for a permit to buy a Spanish property if they haven't become permanent residents yet. In other words, if they are temporary residents haven't officially resided in Spain for five years. This proposal was rejected by Spain's Congressional Housing Committee in late April, but now ERC are trying to get such a law passed only in Catalonia. If there are already questions about whether limiting non-residents from buying homes in Spain contravenes EU laws, it is even more likely that Brussels will not let Spanish national or regional authorities prevent foreign residents from buying, no matter whether they continue to buy Spanish homes in high numbers.
Local Spain
6 days ago
- Business
- Local Spain
Airbnb to cancel listings for lets not registered with Spain's government
Property For Members Airbnb has agreed with Spain's Housing Ministry to take down property listings from its homestay platform if they haven't been registered with the government as required, meaning that over 100,000 short-term and seasonal lets could be affected. Looking to move? Find your next rental apartment here. This July, Spain became the first country in the EU implement the new European regulations on the single registry of short-term rentals. The aim of this is to put a stop to fraud, as well as illegal tourist rentals that conflicts with citizens' right to affordable housing. Landlords had until July 1st 2025 in order to register all tourist, temporary and seasonal rentals, but by July 2nd, almost half had failed to do so. This means that now, thousands of them do not have the right to advertise on platforms such as Airbnb or Only once they have registered and have a special registration number will they be allowed to advertise and get customers. Starting in August 2025, Airbnb has agreed to send the information required by to the Housing Department on a monthly basis, including the corresponding state and regional registration numbers. It has also agreed to remove listings that show irregularities in the national registry or do not appear on it at all. In these cases, the platform will notify hosts in advance, offering them a period of time to correct issue before proceeding with the final removal, unless its state registration number has been revoked, in which case it no longer be included. Back in May of this year, Spain's Ministry of Consumer Affairs asked Airbnb to take down 65,935 tourist accommodation ads from its website, which were in violation of regulations. It is unclear yet how much overlap there is between these almost 66,000 listings already flagged for removal and those not registered on the government's registry, but on the day after the deadline there were 152,857 properties which didn't have the necessary registration code. There are 368,295 short-term and temporary lets in Spain according to the country's National Statistics Institute (INE), although many believe that figure to be higher. The most common reason for a listing to be removed is for properties that have failed to provide their tourist license on the ad, which is mandatory in several regions across the country. This means that in all likelihood they were operating illegally. Spain has been dealing with a severe housing crisis over the last few years, and tourist and seasonal rentals have been largely blamed for taking housing away from the general rental market for locals and contributing to skyrocketing prices.
Malay Mail
06-07-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
MB: Circular economy coming to Selangor within two years, with pilot recycling projects in Shah Alam, PJ and Subang
KLANG, July 6 — Selangor is expected to implement a circular economy framework within the next two years, says Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari. He said pilot projects, including the SelKitar initiative and an electronic waste (e-waste) recycling programme, are already underway to instil circular economy practices among the public. 'We are building up the system gradually. It is not just about earning a few ringgit from recycling. The real challenge is establishing a comprehensive, functioning ecosystem,' he told reporters after launching the 'Plastic-Free Campaign 2025: Series 2' here today. Amirudin said the circular economy is likely to begin in urban areas such as Petaling Jaya, Subang Jaya and Shah Alam, which are suitable testbeds due to their urban infrastructure and urban lifestyle. A circular economy promotes waste reduction by reusing, recycling, upcycling and repurposing materials for as long as possible, thereby preserving resources, reducing emissions and adding economic value. In August 2024, the Housing and Local Government Ministry launched the Solid Waste Circular Economy Action Plan 2025-2035 to guide stakeholders through this transition, focusing on five key pillars, namely governance and legislation, guidelines and procedures, digitalisation and technology, infrastructure and facilities, as well as market development. Meanwhile, Amirudin said Selangor is finalising bylaw amendments across 12 local councils to expand the implementation of the 'No Plastic Bag Day' policy. 'All councils will be briefed before the amendments are tabled at the next State Legislative Assembly sitting,' he added. — Bernama
Malay Mail
06-07-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
Selangor to roll out circular economy within two years
KLANG, July 6 — Selangor is expected to implement a circular economy framework within the next two years, says Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari. He said pilot projects, including the SelKitar initiative and an electronic waste (e-waste) recycling programme, are already underway to instil circular economy practices among the public. 'We are building up the system gradually. It is not just about earning a few ringgit from recycling. The real challenge is establishing a comprehensive, functioning ecosystem,' he told reporters after launching the 'Plastic-Free Campaign 2025: Series 2' here today. Amirudin said the circular economy is likely to begin in urban areas such as Petaling Jaya, Subang Jaya and Shah Alam, which are suitable testbeds due to their urban infrastructure and urban lifestyle. A circular economy promotes waste reduction by reusing, recycling, upcycling and repurposing materials for as long as possible, thereby preserving resources, reducing emissions and adding economic value. In August 2024, the Housing and Local Government Ministry launched the Solid Waste Circular Economy Action Plan 2025-2035 to guide stakeholders through this transition, focusing on five key pillars, namely governance and legislation, guidelines and procedures, digitalisation and technology, infrastructure and facilities, as well as market development. Meanwhile, Amirudin said Selangor is finalising bylaw amendments across 12 local councils to expand the implementation of the 'No Plastic Bag Day' policy. 'All councils will be briefed before the amendments are tabled at the next State Legislative Assembly sitting,' he added. — Bernama
India Today
06-07-2025
- Politics
- India Today
Top court seeks removal of DY Chandrachud from official home, writes to government
The Supreme Court administration has formally written to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, urging immediate action to vacate Bungalow No. 5, Krishna Menon Marg, currently occupied by former Chief Justice of India, Justice DY to the Supreme Court administration, Justice Chandrachud has continued to occupy the official residence beyond the permitted period. Under Rule 3B of the 2022 Supreme Court Judges Rules, a retired Chief Justice is allowed to retain official accommodation for up to six months letter mentions that the six-month period expired on May 10, 2025. Additionally, a special retention permission that had been granted further lapsed on May 31, 2025. The administration informed that the bungalow is part of the official Supreme Court house pool and should now be returned for letter, which was submitted to the Housing Ministry, calls for the possession of the bungalow to be taken from Justice Chandrachud "without any further delay.""I am to request you to take the possession of Bungalow No. 5, Krishna Menon Marg, from Hon'ble Dr. Justice DY Chandrachud without any further delay as not only the permission that was granted for retention... has expired on 31st May, 2025, but also the period of six months provided in Rule 3B of the 2022 Rules has expired on 10th May, 2025," says the letter from a Supreme Court official to ministry's secretary dated July 1.- EndsMust Watch IN THIS STORY#Supreme Court
