The measure, initially approved last Thursday, November 5th, with favorable votes from the governing team (ERC, JUNTS, and CUP) and against from the AVSC group, aims to encourage homes to be used for habitual residential purposes and to mobilize those that remain empty without justification.
The surcharge on the IBI for tourist use homes will vary according to the number of properties: 50% for one HUT, 100% for two or three, and 150% for four or more. Regarding vacant homes, the amendment allows this surcharge to be applied also to owners of a single property that remains empty for more than two consecutive years without justified cause. The surcharge for vacancy can reach up to 150%, depending on the years and the number of properties.
The ordinance includes exceptions for justified reasons such as health, dependency, temporary relocation for work or studies, or works that prevent occupation. Second homes with intermittent utility consumption detected by the Council will also be excluded, following a prior hearing for each case.
Sant Cebrià de Vallalta thus takes advantage of the possibility offered by the new decree from the Council of Ministers on housing protection, which empowers town councils in municipalities declared as housing tension zones to introduce these fiscal changes. The surcharges will be applied from 2028.
“"In exceptional situations, exceptional measures must be taken, and the housing crisis we are suffering has reached this point. We must try to ensure that homes are used for their primary purpose: to be a home."
Following publication in the BOPB, a public exhibition period of thirty business days will open for interested parties to submit allegations.
