Your home, your castle in Mallorca

“Illegal” holiday lets to tourists are hugely unpopular and against the law. Some veteran real estate agents have said that the local authorities are making it increasingly difficult for them, no holiday lets and a growing tax bill. Home sales to foreigners in the Balearics have fallen sharply this year and there is growing concern. Taking all this into account and enter the new Balearic government with their plans to solve the housing crisis.

One of their ideas is to offer apartments which had been illegally rented out to tourists to local residents on long term contracts. It sounds complicated and it looks as if government officials had three shredded wheat for breakfast when they thought of this idea!

I have another suggestion, why not allow property owners to rent out their homes to whoever they want and for the period they want as long as they pay tax on their earnings and the property meets the necessary quality standards?

Not only would it provide vital revenue but it would also give the property market a lift. The hoteliers would not be impressed and would cry foul play but the real estate market is vital for the local economy. Thousands of jobs depend on it.

One of the reasons for the housing crisis is that there is far more demand than supply. In some parts of the island a rental home (long term) is worth its weight in gold. By making things easier for property owners to rent out their houses and apartments the so-called housing crisis could be resolved in one confident swoop.