Tag: Generalitat

Colau Announces Fines Of Up To €600K For Unlicensed Tourist Flats

29 June 2016 – Expansión

Yesterday, the Town Hall of Barcelona announced that it will impose tougher fines in its attempt to eradicate illegal tourist apartments. The sanctions will amount to €30,000 in the case of individual apartment owners and up to €600,000, in the case of virtual platforms promoting unlicensed apartments against which legal proceedings have already been started. The fines will not affect individuals who rent out a room in their homes, but will apply to those who rent out entire homes and do not have the necessary tourist licences, issued by the Generalitat.

Legal proceedings were launched against Airbnb last year and yesterday, that company issued a strong statement against the municipal regulations, which it described as “disappointing” and “archaic”, given that, in its opinion, “they protect traditional companies and leave no room for individual (entrepreneurs)”.

The main trade association in the sector, Apartur, predicted that the plan “will not work at all”, given that (for it to be successful) it would have to be accompanied by the lifting of the veto that prevents the legalisation of new tourist apartments. Apartur represents 210 companies, which own 7,000 of the 9,600 legal tourist apartments in the city.

The fight against illegal tourist apartments is one of the battle horses that Ada Colau set herself when she was elected mayoress of Barcelona, just over a year ago. The Town Hall said yesterday that in the last year and a half, it has performed 2,505 inspections, of which 2,701 have concluded with the opening of disciplinary proceedings. It also confirmed that it hired more inspectors on Monday.

Last year, Ada Colau opened the first legal proceedings against Airbnb and Homeaway, and following the continuation of the new requirements, nine online portals have stopped advertising unlicensed tourist homes, including Fotocasa, Tripadvisor and Rent4days.

Original story: Expansión (by David Casals)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Colau Launches A Plan To Become The Largest Housing Developer In Barcelona

15 February 2016 – El Confidencial

The plan of Barcelona Mayoress of “Barcelona en Comú” is very ambitious: to promote a large park of affordable rental flats during his tenure, a public investment of around 500 million.

Ada Colau wants to change the game rules.  And housing development will be field chosen to do it, consistent with her past as an activist of the Platform of People Affected by Mortgage  And housing development is the field chosen to do it, consistent with her past as an activist of the People Affected by Mortages Platform (PAH). The plan is very ambitious: building 2,365 homes during his tenure, a public investment of around EUR 500 million and which would be taken on by Barcelona Municipal Housing Agency, a City Council´s body. With the project start, Colau will become the biggest Barcelona promoter.

The plan, to which “El Confidencial” has had access El Confidencial, is being currently presented by the new Manager of the Housing Agency, Javier Burón, in multiple rounds with developers, entrepreneurs and different social agents. Barcelona City Council, one of the few in Spain with a surplus, has sufficient funds to do it But as the project points out, funding from the European Investment Bank (EIB) is planned to be used to create a public park of rental housing in Barcelona similar to that of any European city. The EU rental home average is around 15% in an medium sized city. In Barcelona, this percentage is only around 1.5%.

Given that in 2015 all private developers built 3,000 homes in the Catalan capital, a drive this size would make the City Council become teh first Real Estate engine in the city.

Out of the 2,365 homes Ada Colau wants to promotr, almost 800 homes are already being built, by the Agency, most of them (a total of 105)  in Glòries district. Of the remainder, some 518 are in the process of getting licensed, half of them in the district of Sant Andreu.

And the rest is Colau´s flagship project: 10 real estate developments in the same number of sites, of which the City Council´s Agency will take care.
This part totals 1,145 homes spread over ten areas, defined in Buron´s  draft as “public and affordable land in the metropolitan area of Barcelona”.

Free Trade Zone commitment

Colau´s bet for the free zone is clear. Of the new projects, two promotions add 534 homes for the new Marina District in that part of town to be started.

But the new housing is only part of the bet, although the most important from the point of view of the City Council economic effort. Colau also plans taking measures such as a “future housing mapping and mobilization (empty homes) to guide them towards an affordable rent”, “bargaining, purchasing and refusal and preemptive rights with financial institutions” and apply a “procedure of penalties and tax measures against underuse “, e.g. penalizing empty flats, as stated in the project named ‘The local public action in Barcelona housing’.

As reflected in a study conducted in April 2015, in Barcelona there are 31,200 empty homes, of which about 2,592 are owned by financial institutions, appearing in the registry created by the “Generalitat”, as evidenced on Colau´s draft. The Mayoress wants to reach agreements with banks to transfer these properties in order to be also used in social rent.

Original story: Expansion (by Marcos Lamelas)

Translation: Aura Ree

Cataluña: Banks Have 3 Months To Confirm Stock Of Vacant Homes

25 March 2015 – El País

Financial institutions, investment funds and the bad bank – Sareb – will have three months to inform the Generalitat about the number of empty homes they have on their books as a result of foreclosures or the assignment of deeds in lieu of payment (“daciones en pago”). Using this information, the Catalan Government will be able to impose a tax on vacant homes (the corresponding bill is currently with the Parliament) and undertake the necessary actions to establish their condition and demand their refurbishment. The decree that creates the register, approved yesterday by the Consell Executiu, also includes a pre-emptive purchase option by the Public Administrations of the homes whose residents are at risk of being evicted.

The Ministry for Housing, led by Carles Sala, wants to increase its stock of social homes in areas with highest demand. The urgent measure decree law to mobilise homes resulting from mortgage foreclosures establishes that the Public Administrations may exercise “their pre-emptive rights and rights of first refusal” – i.e. to a preferential purchase – when a company, financial institution, investment fund or Sareb is going to sell a home for which a mortgage foreclosure procedure is pending in any one of the 72 municipalities with greatest demand for housing. The text will come into force when the Official Document from the Generalitat of Cataluña (Documento Oficial de la Generalitat de Cataluña or DOGC) is published, which is expected to happen this week.

Sources from the Catalan Executive explain that they estimate that the banks have between 10,000 and 20,000 vacant homes on their books in areas with highest demand. This figure, which currently ranges quite a lot, should be confirmed by the register, which all owners of empty homes in Catalaña will have to sign up to. The occupants of the homes that will be handed over to the Public Administrations – which may in turn assign them to entities in the third sector (of social economy), per the request of those entities – will have to pay a social rent amounting to €212 per month on average.

The Department for Planning and Housing, led by Santi Vila (pictured above), is already exploring the market and may announce its first transactions next week. For the time being, the Catalan Housing Agency has €8 million to make purchases, although its final budget will depend on the amount collected through the tax that it will apply to the banks’ empty homes, which may range between €8 million and €26 million. Sources from the department explain that they are not looking to purchase homes for €100,000. The majority of the homes that have eviction orders pending are located in suburban neighbourhoods, and as such they are modest flats whose market prices may be as low as €20,000 or €40,000.

The Generalitat has also found that many of the homes in the stock that have been vacated due to evictions are falling into disrepair. For this reason, the decree obliges the entities that own such properties to carry out the necessary renovation work. If they do not, there are two options. The first involves a serious fine. The Housing Law establishes fines of up to €90,000, although the Catalan Government is in favour of ensuring that the amount of these fines is commensurate with the cost of the works that need to be performed. If the financial entity that owns the home does not carry out the renovation work, the Generalitat may conduct an “enforcement”, involving the expropriation of the use of the home for a period of between four and 10 years.

In the end, the department will try to avoid any double evictions through an aid package that will be collected in April. In this case, the objective is to prevent families that have lost their homes, but that have benefitted from the assignment of deeds in lieu of payment or social (discounted) rent by the financial entity, from having to face additional procedures if they cannot afford the rent.

Original story: El País (by Lluís Pellicer)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Cataluña Will Fine Banks That Do Not Lease Out Foreclosed Homes

11 March 2015 – Expansión

The Generalitat will impose fines of up to €90,000 on banks that have homes (on their balance sheets) resulting from mortgage foreclosures and the assignment of deeds in lieu of payment, which are in a poor condition and as a result, are not leased out. The 72 municipalities with the highest demand (for housing) will be forced to transfer affected homes to the Generalitat, which, after refurbishing them, will lease them out for a maximum period of ten years. This is one of the measures contained in a law introduced to address urgent housing measures, which the Government of Artur Mas (CiU) announced yesterday.

The text also empowers the Generalitat and the town halls to exercise ‘their pre-emptive rights and rights of first refusal’ for all of the homes that have resulted from mortgage foreclosures and the assignment of deeds in lieu of payment, that the bank wants to sell. The objective is to prevent packages of properties ending up in the hands of international funds and evicting the tenants from those homes.

Original story: Expansión (by A.Z.)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Catalonia, La Caixa Rush to Save BCN World As Veremonte Leaves

15/12/2014 – ExpansionPro

Generalitat, the regional authority of Catalonia, decided to save the gaming and entertainment project of BCN World, set to be constructed adjacently to the Port Aventura park in Villa-seca and Salou, Tarragona. Businessman Enrique Bañuelos and his group Veremonte stepped down from their position as the main developers. Now, Catalonia will buy the land which belongs to La Caixa’s holding Criteria.

As the buying deadline for Veremonte passed last week and the group did not pay the pledged 377 million euro amount, a new agreement with the entity was signed. The underlying plots of 190 hectares in total are destined for construction of hotels and casinos inside the BCN World. The local government is going to pay 100 million euros for them, not immediately though. It will dispose of a purchase option to execute within 18 months, i.e. from January 2015 to June 2016.

Four groups obtained licenses to operate in the complex: Chinese Melco, U.S. Hard Rock, Veremonte and Grupo Perelada, a local casino leader. Also, Value Retail, Meliá and Caesars are involved in the project.

Generalitat will seal the deal through public company Incasol, in exchange for a license and the land. It is said that once the complex running, the Catalan authority may earn 300 million euros.

In turn, the entity chaired by Isidro Faine is going to keep the residential part of the BCN World and develop it through its affiliate Mediterranean Beach & Golf. Generalitat would intend 250.000 square meters for the dwelling units and 10.000 sqm for the retail area.

Veremonte justifies its decision to withdraw with the fact that Catalonia failed to finish its Town Planning Project for the BCN World on time, i.e. before the deadline, which was essential for starting the building works.

‘No matter what the company does, the BCN World will be constructed’, said the head of Generalitat, Andreu Mas-Collel. He sees a great potential in the project, given both interest of the casino operators and general good it may do to the Catalan economy. Recently, the project’s managers met up to confirm and rectify their intention to continue in the process.

 

Original story ExpansiónPro (by Sergi Saborit, Jueves 11 diciembre 2014, pp 4)

Translation: AURA REE

Catalonia Sells Casa Burés For €18.8 Mn to Europa Capital Partner

24/11/2014 – Expansion

Local government of Catalonia (also known as Generalitat) has sold a modernist building called Casa Burés, standing in Barcelona, for €18.8 million to fund Europa Capital Partner allied up with Trinder Promociones. The buyers are planning to convert the little palace into a block of apartments.

The property, listed since 1979, was acquired by the City Hall of Barcelona in 2007 for €26 million in an attempt to protect it from being converted into a hotel and save for the city. In 2009, the building located in the intersection of the Girona and the Ausiàs March streets fell into hands of Generalitat with the estimated value of €26 million.

A need of liquidity pushed the Catalan authorities to put the edifice up for sale in 2013 but ever since no investor offered the asking amount. First and second tenders were unattended in spite of a 20% cut in the price.

 

Original article: Expansión (by Marisa Anglés)

Translation: AURA REE

Catalonian Independence & Its Possible Impact on the RE Sector of Spain

16/10/2014 – El Economista

The threat of Catalonia going independent stirred the real estate market of Spain up. Sources from the banking and property management areas admit that the uncertainty invoked by the independence movement could result in a halt of the sector’s activity, as well as in price depression.

Experts indicate that the real impact would be seen in the first years of the hipothetical independence with recovery to be observed in mid-term.

If that followed by stagnation in the real estate market, the specialists advise further price slash of REO properties as an indispensable move for the Spanish entities to meet their annual targets.

Mortgages

Mortgages are the next issue which should be carefully approached in case of the region’s separation from the Kingdom of Spain. The odds for Catalonia of coming to an agreement with the European Union seem very low and for this reason the loans granted in Euro (€) might be affected.

The contracts shall be revised in terms of conditions permitting currency change. However, even if such exists therein, the mortgages still could be loss-generating due to possible currency rate fluctuations.

Furthermore, as Catalonia would not belong to the eurozone, the Euribor could no more serve as the benchmark of varaible interest loans. Nevertheless, bankers suppose that the contracts signed before the political border change and especially those sealed with the entities based outside of the region in question, will retain the indicator.

Artur Mas, the brain of the ‘operation independence’ and the president of the local government, foresees creation of a central bank to control monetary policy in the new country in imitation of the Bank of Spain.

Looking at what happened in Scotland, with a sudden August price fall after three years of increase on the forefront, the insecurity provoked by the referendum on independence pulled the housing values down 0.2% more.

 

Original article: El Economista

Translation: AURA REE

The Catalan Government Predicts Property Sales Of Around €130 Million Before The End Of The Year

12/08/2014 – Europa Press

During 2014 it wants to find the future headquarters of the Department of Economy

The Generalitat, Government of the autonomous region of Catalonia, intends to complete property sales amounting to some 130 million euros before the end of the year in order to meet the objective of earning income of €400 million during 2014, of which it has already achieved €266 million up to July with the sale of 17 buildings.

That is what the general director of Patrimonio, Salvador Estapé, has explained in an interview by Europa Press, indicating that in this second half year “smaller transactions rather than sales of large buildings” are expected, and in the Catalan capital in any case.

The exception with regards to important buildings is that of the Barcelona Stock Exchange, for sale since 2011 – first as part of a batch of properties and then separately – and valued then at €57,4 million. Its sale remains one of the objectives of the Catalan Government, although the intention is to be able to sell it empty.

Relocation of the Barcelona stock exchange

This requires an agreement with the Barcelona Stock Exchange, which has the right to use the current facilities until 2030, to get it to relocate; they are currently in talks, but still without any agreement reached, according to both parties.

“It is the most important asset. Our wish would be to be able to sell it because it is very well situated and it would contribute to the sales plan” confirmed Estapé.

Sources from the Barcelona Stock Exchange have explained to Europa Press that they have “a relationship of maximum collaboration with the Generalitat” although finding an alternative place is difficult.

“It is in a study and analysis phase, because the Stock Exchange has an infrastructure which is not typical, with telecommunications and computer systems which are not easy to move; it’s complicated”, they added.

The Generalitat also has for sale the old building of the Department for Work (Conselleria de Trabajo), in Barcelona’s Sepúlveda street, which has also been available for sale for years.

Concentration

Estapé has highlighted the Catalan Government’s objective to “work towards greater centralisation and to avoid the dispersion and fragmentation of spaces” in the administrative departments of the Generalitat.

He has added that the plans for centralisation are not changed by the fact that virtually no offers were received in response to the first tender held to lease a building of between 20.000 and 35.000 square metres, in order to relocate the Department of Economy – whose headquarters in the Barcelona’s Rambla Catalunya had been sold – and other departments.

On this point, he has explained that during this second half of the year they would like to find a place where the headquarters of the Department of Economy will be located by two years from now, when the maximum deadline for the move will end: “There is still time, but time passes quickly.”

The rationalisation plan approved by the Catalan Government also foresees the “clustering” or grouping together in one area of the headquarters of some entities, such as the autonomous region’s public authorities.

In this way, they could be concentrated close to the Generalitat, in Barcelona’s old town, and the Tax Office of Catalonia and the Institute of Statistics of Catalonia (Idescat) could also change location in order to improve their financial performance.

Original article: Europa Press
Translation: Aura REE