Tag: Pedro Sánchez

Testa Suspends the Rental of its Homes Following Approval of New Rental Act

24 April 2019 – El Boletín

Blackstone, the fund that has invested the most in the Spanish real estate sector over the last five years, has reportedly suspended the rental of hundreds of homes managed by its Socimi Testa following the approval of the new Rental Act by Pedro Sánchez’s government on 1 March.

The new decree lengthens rental contracts, giving tenants the right to remain in properties for seven years in those cases in which the landlord is a company, and prohibits rent increases above CPI.

Testa has more than 11,000 properties under management and Blackstone has owned a majority stake in the Socimi since last year after acquiring shares from banks and other groups.

According to professionals from intermediary companies that work for Blackstone, a decision was taken to suspend Testa’s activity following the approval of the decree, in light of the uncertainty generated. Activity is expected to resume in May, following the general election.

Blackstone already warned a couple of months ago that the new Rental Act is discriminatory and would only serve to increase rental prices.

Original story: El Boletín

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Blackstone Publicly Criticises the Government’s Rental Housing Plan

13 November 2018 – Voz Pópuli

The company that has invested the most money in the Spanish real estate sector over the last five years, Blackstone, has publicly criticised the Government regarding its rental housing plan, which includes several measures that will directly impact the US company’s business in Spain.

Blackstone’s most senior representative in Spain, Claudio Boada, has warned that he views with “concern” the plans unveiled by Pedro Sánchez’s Government in this regard. Boada was speaking at a breakfast meeting this morning organised by the United States Chamber of Commerce in Spain (Amcham Spain) with the Minister for the Economy, Nadia Calviño, in attendance, at the Villa Magna Hotel in Madrid.

Claudio Boada, Senior Adviser at Blackstone for Spain and Portugal, was speaking after Calviño’s presentation, at a symposium led by Jaime Malet, President of Amcham Spain, and attended by more than fifty representatives of US companies in Spain. He warned that the US group regards with “concern” the plans unveiled by the Government for rental housing, and he pointed out that his company has invested €25 billion in the country in recent years “backing Spain during the worst years of the crisis”.

In particular, Boada referred to the project to return the duration of rental contracts to five years, versus their current duration of three years (as a result of the Urban Rental Law, dated June 2013), which will be applicable for physical persons. In those cases where the lessor is a legal entity, the minimum duration will be seven years.

The most senior representative of Blackstone in Spain, who attended the meeting together with Eduard Mendiluce, who leads the investment firm’s real estate business, requested channels of dialogue with the Minister for the Economy to address the matters.

The plan from the Government regarding rental homes affects the buoyancy of Blackstone’s core business in Spain. The company chaired by Stephen Schwarzman has been purchasing large packages of mortgages corresponding to more than 100,000 rental homes from Spanish banks over the last five years (…).

The group has taken advantage of the financial and real estate crisis to acquire those homes and mortgages at significant discounts, but it has taken the risk of making the operations profitable by trying to improve the management of those properties.

For Blackstone, whose motto is “buy, fix and sell”, its business involves renting out homes purchased at the most profitable prices possible taking into account the large discounts that it typically obtains upon acquisition. It also gets rid of tenants who do not pay their rent.

For this reason, the plans announced by the Government regarding rental homes affect the US group so much, given that far from making the rental sector more flexible, they would actually slow it down. Problem tenants, those who refuse to pay or leave a rental home, will presumably be given more time to dig their heels in (…).

Royal Decree on the horizon

“Blackstone has not threatened to stop investing in Spain”, said sources close to the investment company consulted by this newspaper at the end of the symposium organised by Amcham Spain. They added that the firm’s intention is very much to continue investing.

Nevertheless, the same sources indicated that Blackstone does require the possibility of entering into talks with the Administration to express its view regarding the rental policy, and that they believe that the Government will approve the new measures in this regard by Royal Decree this month. The company considers that there could be several alternatives reflected in the parliamentary procedure for the new regulation.

Original story: Voz Pópuli (by Alberto Ortín)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Sánchez’s Government Lets Socimis & Sicavs Off the Fiscal Hook Despite Podemos’s Efforts

16 October 2018 – El Independiente

The Government has managed to dodge two demands from Podemos that had raised concerns in the financial community: the taxation of Socimis and the conditions of Sicavs, the companies that wealthy fortunes use to manage their assets.

The Budget Plan for 2019 approved on Monday at the extraordinary council of ministers does not allude to these two vehicles, despite the contumacious struggle by the purple party to put an end to their benefits. In fact, the Government led by Pedro Sánchez and Podemos had signed an agreement for the budget plan for next year, which included modifications to the conditions of both companies, but, in the end, that has been ruled out.

The aforementioned agreement, published on 11 October, included increasing the tax on Socimis (…), which currently operate under a special tax regime for collective investment institutions (funds and Sicavs).

For the income obtained during the exercise of their main activity (rental and leasing of properties), Socimis pay tax at a rate of 0%. And for income that they receive from other types of activities, they pay tax at a rate of 25%.

The pact between the Executive and Podemos was going to mean applying a tax rate of 15% on the profits not distributed by those entities. In the end, that measure does not form part of the budget for 2019.

The other victory earned by Sánchez over Pablo Iglesias stars Sicavs. Both parties had agreed to tighten control over these vehicles to avoid their fraudulent use. In the end, they will be subject to the same supervision that has applied to them until now.

The agreement had involved granting the inspection bodies of the Tax Authorities the competence to declare, for exclusive tax purposes, the breach of the requirements established for the Sicavs in the financial legislation. In other words, it gave powers to the institution to ensure that the vehicles had, as required by that law, 100 genuine shareholders, to combat the typical practice whereby a single investor controls most of the capital (…).

Similarly, the Government and Podemos had reached an agreement to “establish additional requirements for application by the Sicavs of a reduced tax rate aimed at ensuring their nature as collective investment instruments, for example, the establishment of a maximum capital concentration in the hands of a single investor (including the stakes of related individuals and legal entities). However, that measure, although it may reduce the volume of capital that these entities receive, would objectify the collective nature of these investment vehicles, facilitating their regularisation by the Tax Agencies in the cases of fraudulent uses of Sicavs”.

Taxes on the banks

The entities that have, for the time being, not managed to free themselves from the tax blow are the banks. The Government wants the next budget to include a specific tax that targets financial transactions. The so-called Tobin tax has already met firm opposition from the banks and regulators, which warn of the risks that its implementation would have for the growth of the economy.

The Government’s forecast is that the proceeds raised from such a tax would reach €850 million, according to the Minister for Finance, María Jesús Montero (…).

Original story: El Independiente (by Ana Antón)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Government & Podemos Agree to Allow Town Halls to Regulate Rental Prices

11 October 2018 – Eje Prime

The Government has said yes to public control of the rental market in Spain. The Executive led by Pedro Sánchez (below left) has agreed to the regulation of rental prices by Town Halls, according to explanations provided in a Budget agreement reached on Thursday by the PSOE and Unidos Podemos. The measure is established provided its application is “temporary and exceptional” and is carried out only in those urban areas where there has previously been an “abusive increase” in rents.

Rent has formed the focus of the new Government’s action plan in terms of housing. In parallel to the regulation of prices, the Executive has announced that it will advocate the extension of the minimum term of lease contracts from three years to five, and, in those cases where the owner is a legal entity, the lengthening of the commitment between landlords and tenants to seven years. Moreover, the tacit renewal of contracts will be increased from one year to three, provided the intention to not renew the agreement is communicated by either of the two parties at least six months before it is due to terminate.

In addition, the PSOE and Unidos Podemos have agreed that damage deposits (fianzas) to enter rental flats will be capped at a maximum of two months and that the signing of bank guarantees will no longer be demandable by landlords. In the event that an owner wants to recover his home before the term agreed with the tenant, then that scenario must be formally explained in the contract in force.

More funding for the development of rental housing

The agreement, which will now have to be approved by Congress, includes a measure that supports the development of public housing. In the event that it receives the green light from the chamber, the Government will increase the housing budget for next year to €630 million. In 2020, it will increase that pot further still to €700 million and in 2021, to €1 billion. According to the text, in ten years, Spain will invest between 1% and 1.5% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in public housing.

One of the objectives of the public housing plan is “to avoid “homes” from being sold to vulture funds or sold for a profit”, so as to ensure that “particularly vulnerable people” have the possibility of accessing a rental home.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Sánchez Reveals that the Housing Law will Extend Rentals to 5 Years

12 September 2018 – El Diario

The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez (pictured below), has demanded agreement from the political groups this afternoon regarding the next Housing Law, which will include, amongst other measures, an increase in the terms of rental contracts, and their subsequent extensions, to 5 years from their current duration of 3 years.

Sánchez posted the request on his Facebook account, with a link to Twitter, where he indicated that he was “appealing to all political forces to reach a pact that will convert housing into a right for citizens, far removed from speculation”.

The President of the Government highlighted that he wants to “shield” the “social function” of housing and he revealed several aspects in this regard.

Besides the increase in the duration of rental contracts and their subsequent extensions to five years, Sánchez highlighted “a shock plan for 20,000 rental homes to increase supply and whereby reduce the pressure on prices”.

Similarly, he promised an “improvement in the fiscal framework to stimulate supply and moderate prices”, a “review of the aid programs for young people”, and the “regulation of tourist apartments”.

Sánchez also mentioned an “improvement in the financing of housing developments through the ICO”, the Official Credit Institute, as well as a “reorientation of the State Housing Plan to promote and protect a public housing stock that is sufficient and affordable, and which allows us to attend, in particular, to the needs of the most vulnerable people in society”.

As the Head of the Government concluded, “Achieving social progress that will change the lives of thousands of people is in our hands”.

The Minister for Development, José Luis Ábalos, reported last week that an inter-ministerial group was working on specific proposals for housing, and he said that in terms of addressing the rise in rental prices, they are studying legal reforms regarding rental contract terms and extensions, amongst other measures (…).

Original story: El Diario 

Translation: Carmel Drake

Spain’s Government Wants to Prohibit the Sale of Public Housing to Vulture Funds

12 September 2018 – El Mundo

The Government wants to give a new impetus to the housing policy in Spain and has placed social housing at the centre of its strategy. In this context, the President of the Executive, Pedro Sánchez (pictured below), has announced to the Congress of Deputies, that the new law he is preparing will configure social housing as a public service to ensure access to it for all citizens and moreover, to put a stop to the sale of public homes to the so-called venture funds.

During his speech at the control session of the Government, Sánchez announced that the State Attorney will appear in court regarding a criminal case into the investigation of the sale of 5,000 public rental homes undertaken by PP governments in the Community of Madrid and the Town Hall of the Spanish capital to private equity funds in 2012 and 2013.

The Institute of Housing in Madrid (Ivima), of the regional Government of Madrid, sold 2,935 public rental homes in 2013, whilst the Town Hall of Madrid, through the Municipal Housing and Land Company (EMVS), sold 1,860 homes of the same kind in 2012, according to Efe.

“We are not going to stop until the administrations that are behind this intolerable abuse, which has affected so many people of limited means, assume their political and economic responsibilities”, said the President.

The demands of Iglesias

Sánchez responded in that way to the Secretary-General of Podemos, Pablo Iglesias, who has also called for other measures to put a stop to the rise in residential sale and rental prices in Spain, including, “ending the privileges afforded to Socimis, the commercial companies that operate in the real estate market and which are taxed at 0%”.

The leader of Podemos also requested that “large owners and venture funds, who own more than ten homes” be forced “to put those properties on the market”, and he proposed that “it is fundamental that the Town Halls be given authority to declare certain urban areas as “stressed markets” so that rental prices there can be regulated”.

Original story: El Mundo (by María Hernández)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Podemos & the Tax Authorities Negotiate a Stricter Fiscal Framework for Socimis

11 September 2018 – Expansión

Podemos and the Government are studying measures to put a stop to the “rental bubble in Spain’s largest cities”, which Pablo Iglesias argues is being caused by the tax advantages being afforded to the Socimis.

The Tax Authorities and Podemos are negotiating a stricter fiscal framework for Socimis. That is according to sources at the negotiations, and to an announcement made by the leader of Podemos, Pablo Iglesias (pictured above, right), after his meeting with the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez (pictured above, left), on Thursday.

Iglesias spoke of an “understanding” on this point and of advances in the negotiations. Although the fiscal framework of these real estate investment companies has always been under Podemos’s spotlight, it did not mention it in the document that it sent to the Tax Authorities in August detailing its requests, in exchange for its support of the Budgets. But, that was not a question of “limited demands”, according to sources at Podemos, who are now negotiating measures with the Executive to put a stop to the “rental bubble in Spain’s largest cities”. And, in Podemos’s opinion, the beneficial legislation afforded to Socimis explains this bubble, and it needs to be addressed urgently. Iglesias will spend tomorrow questioning Sánchez in the control session of the Government in Congress regarding the “measures that the Executive plans to adopt to put an end to the rental housing bubble”.

“We need to discourage the promotion of these types of companies, which foster the bubble model, undermine the public coffers and represent an affront to competition. We think that the special framework for Socimis, whose main feature consists of a Corporation Tax rate of 0%, needs to be reversed”, said Podemos recently in a document (…).

In this latest document, Podemos therefor, therefore, to put an end to this zero tax rate for Socimis, compared with the nominal tax rate of 25% (…). The negotiations with the Tax Authorities are based on the premise that Podemos wants to bring the tax rates for Socimis in line with those applicable to other companies. However, it does not rule out that the measures agreed will be aimed at having more control over their tax framework.

Zapatero’s Government created Socimis in 2009 in an attempt to revitalise the real estate market, inspired by the REITs (Real Estate Investment Trust) from the Anglo-Saxon world. They enjoy a very beneficial tax framework. Their Corporation Tax rate is 0%, provided they fulfil certain requirements: the minimum share capital must amount to at least €5 million (…); the funds must be invested in properties; a minimum of 80% of the profits obtained from rental must be distributed as dividends; and at least 80% of the value of the assets in urban buildings must be leased for at least three years.

Unlike the Sicavs, there is no requirement for Socimis to have a minimum number of shareholders, but their shares must be admitted for trading on a regulated market (…).

Following the economic recovery and the boom in the real estate market since 2013, the Socimis are enjoying a golden period (….).

Original story: Expansión (by Mercedes Serraller)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Spain’s Banks Set to Sell €120bn+ in Problem Assets This Year

4 July 2018 – Cinco Días

Spain’s banks are stepping down on the accelerator to put an end to the property hangover, although it will still take another two or three years for them to get rid of all of the excesses left over from the financial crisis. And that is not so much due to the leftover real estate portfolios but more because of the portfolios of non-performing loans, a caption that is continuing to augment the balance sheets of financial institutions.

In this way, the experts hope that this year will see a new record in terms of the sale of portfolios, for an approximate total of €120 billion, including the macro-operations from Santander and BBVA, announced last year but completed this year. Without them, the figure could amount to more than €51 billion, slightly higher than in 2017, which would increase to €80 billion if Sareb manages to sell a €30 billion portfolio.

Pressure from the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Bank of Spain, as well as that exerted by the market itself, is causing financial institutions to opt to sell their portfolios of problem assets in single operations wherever possible, rather than selling them off in a piecemeal fashion, in light of the prospects of rising prices.

Interest from opportunistic funds to invest in Spain and, also forecasts for even greater price rises for real estate assets in the future, are leading the banks to take advantage of the opportunity to clean-up their balance sheets between this year and next, just 10 years after the start of the crisis, explain several experts.

“The funds have large amounts of liquidity. Moreover, interest rates are still at historical minimums (still negative) and so financing can be obtained at very low prices, hence their interest in buying large portfolios of assets linked to property. They want to take advantage of the current climate”, explains Íñigo Laspiur, Director of Corporate Finance CBRE España.

All of the experts agree that the sale by Santander of Popular’s property to Blackstone, an operation announced last year, but ratified at the beginning of this year, for a gross amount of around €30 billion, was the trigger that caused the banks to decide to divest their portfolios on a mass scale.

Since that operation was ratified at the beginning of this year, to date, the banks have divested more than €62 billion in problem assets. That amount includes BBVA’s operation with Cerberus, the fund to which it sold €13 billion. Nevertheless, that operation is still pending approval from the Deposit Guarantee Fund (FGD) since some of it forms part of the Asset Protection Scheme (EPA), having proceeded from the former savings bank Unnim.

Financial sources maintain that there are currently operations underway amounting to another €21 billion, plus an addition €8 billion that may be closed over the coming months. The largest include the sale of around €11 billion in assets from Sabadell (of which €900 million has already been sold to Axactor), whose sale is scheduled for this month.

To these figures another €30 billion gross may be added from the sale of a Sareb portfolio this year if Pedro Sánchez’s Government approves that potential operation in the end. Santander has also put up for sale another €6 billion.

Original story: Cinco Días (by Ángeles Gonzalo Alconada)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Spain’s New Government Proposes an Action Plan to Alleviate the Rental Market

18 June 2018 – El Confidencial

The rental market is, without doubt, the issue that Pedro Sánchez, the new President of Spain, and José Luis Ábanols, the new Minister for Development, will have to face in light of the price boom being experienced in certain areas of the country. According to sources close to the PSOE, the new Executive is going to focus its housing policy on: facilitating access to rental homes for young and older people; and curbing the rise in house prices, leaving to one side those measures destined to buying a home (…). For this, the new Executive is going to need support from other parliamentary groups, including Podemos, which is amongst its main allies, with very similar proposals to those put forward by the socialists to tackle the rental problem.

In terms of the State Housing Plan for 2018-2021 approved in March, when the Government was still under the mandate of the PP, the same sources confirm that the agreements with the autonomous regions have not yet been signed and, therefore, its execution is still pending (…).

Rental prices are the most pressing issue of the day. During Mariano Rajoy’s mandate, not only was it in the background, but also several draft bills presented to the Congress to tackle the boom in rental prices were defeated. The first one that failed to pass Congress’s filter was the Platform for those Affected by Mortgages (PAH), whilst proposals put forward by the PSOE were also initially vetoed by the PP, although the veto was not only not ratified, it was also lifted last Friday and so it will return to parliamentary debate, where a consensus with the other political parties will be needed to push it ahead.

The socialists propose restoring the duration of five-year rental contracts, limiting rental price rises – in the case of renewals – to the evolution of CPI, as well as introducing significant tax relief for those who decide to rent their homes below certain thresholds or by limiting the deposits required. All of these proposals are susceptible to being supported by the political parties that supported Pedro Sánchez’s no-confidence motion, in particular, Podemos (…).

Limiting rentals

(…). In its proposal, the PSOE is committed to offering tax incentives to those landlords who let out their flats on the basis of a public price reference system, depending on the area in which their property is located. Such a system would have to be fixed by the town halls. All landlords who respect those limits could benefit from a 60% deduction on their income tax returns (…).

To facilitate access to rental housing for young people, the PSOE proposes that if a home is let to a young person aged between 18 and 30 on a low income, then the tax treatment available to the landlord would be even more favourable, with deductions of 100% (…).

Original story: El Confidencial (by E. Sanz)

Translation: Carmel Drake