The country’s property federation, POMIDA, is urging the government to introduce meaningful reforms that go beyond symbolic measures, arguing that current incentives have done little to increase the availability of affordable rental housing.
POMIDA’s central concern is that taxation on rental income remains disproportionately high compared to other types of personal income, such as earnings from sole proprietorships or freelance work. This, they argue, disincentivizes owners from renting out properties, leaving thousands of homes unused in a time of urgent need.
One measure under scrutiny is the three-year tax exemption for previously vacant properties, introduced to encourage owners to put empty homes back on the market. POMIDA believes the policy requires immediate changes to be effective.
They propose reducing the vacancy threshold from three years to 18 months, eliminating the requirement for a minimum three-year lease—which currently excludes groups like seasonal workers, substitute teachers, and rural doctors—and removing the penalty that revokes the tax benefit if a lease ends early.
Beyond this, the federation is pressing for a long-delayed ministerial decision outlining the terms of a 2025 subsidy program for property upgrades, proposing a cap of €16,000 per property. They are also calling for the abolition of the supplementary ENFIA property tax, a 3% discount for those who pay it in full upfront, and a reversal of plans to delegate its collection to local authorities.
In the area of inheritance and property succession, POMIDA advocates extending the current €800,000 tax-free threshold to include “living inheritance” contracts, and eliminating taxes on property transfers between close relatives. Additional proposals include full ENFIA exemptions and tax relief for the restoration of listed buildings, deferral of taxation on unpaid use compensations, and separate taxation of income from shared spaces in apartment buildings.
