ALP aims to halt the housing crisis and restore confidence to homeowners

The housing crisis in Portugal continues to be a difficult reality to resolve, and several organizations are trying to appeal to the Government to minimize the impacts, not only of rising prices but also of supply and demand, among other issues.

To this end, the Lisbon Property Owners' Association (ALP) has sent the government and members of the Assembly of the Republic a package of ten measures that could be included in next year's State Budget. The objective, the association says, "is simple: to stem the housing crisis and restore confidence among property owners, after years of erratic policies that have driven away investment and created 'pandemonium' in housing and rentals."

"The government doesn't have the time or resources to solve the housing crisis alone. It's urgent to mobilize private property owners and restore predictability and fiscal justice. Without trust, there are no homes," says Luís Menezes Leitão, president of the ALP.

Among the measures presented is the immediate elimination of the AIMI, which, according to the ALP, is "an ideological tax that only applies to housing and generates around 150 million euros per year (less than 0.1% of the State Budget), but destroys investor confidence."

For the ALP, there's no doubt: "The AIMI doesn't solve anything, but it creates fear. By ending it, the Government and Parliament send an immediate signal of confidence, bringing more real estate and investment to the market, and, therefore, without losing tax revenue."

But that's not all. The end of the rent freeze is also in place, "which still affects 16% of national rentals and costs landlords more than R$600 million annually, according to a study by the State itself."

According to ALP data, citing official figures, frozen rents account for 16% of total rentals in Portugal. "Their impact is much higher in Lisbon and Porto, which are precisely the metropolitan areas most affected by the rising prices and shortages of supply that characterize the housing crisis."

Today, in Lisbon and Porto, he adds, "there are still contracts with monthly rents of 20, 30 or 50 euros for apartments that are worth hundreds of times more on the affordable market."

The 2012 reform (NRAU – New Rental Regime) “was an attempt to normalize the Portuguese rental market, by allowing the progressive updating of old rents, reconciling the right to housing with the right to property”.

However, the Mais Habitação program, from 2023, "stopped this process, once again freezing more than a hundred thousand old contracts after a transitional period successively extended by 11 years."

The association also talks about direct support for needy tenants, not via landlords with the aim of "simplifying and ensuring social effectiveness", but also through the exemption of IRS on rent to students as an "urgent response to the deficit of 50,000 beds in Higher Education".

Among the measures presented, there is also talk of greater social justice, with the ALP advocating for "extending the minimum subsistence allowance and benefits to landlords with low incomes and certified incapacity; allowing deductions for essential expenses from personal income tax; exemption from Stamp Duty on new rental contracts and first homes."

For the ALP, the housing crisis cannot be resolved with more subsidies and emergency measures. "We need trust, stability, and justice."

"Freezing rents perpetuates injustices. Blindly taxing investors kills supply. If we want more homes for families, we must send a clear signal of confidence. The 2026 Budget is the opportunity to change course," said Luís Menezes Leitão. The ALP further states that its proposals "are balanced and do not represent significant costs for the State – in many cases, they even generate revenue by encouraging investment and bringing more properties to the market."

"The State must stop being the enemy of housing and become a partner of homeowners and families," concludes Luís Menezes Leitão, adding that 2026 "must mark a turning point in this dramatic situation for everyone: a real shock of confidence in housing is needed."