MÁS por Palma proposes limiting home purchases and raising taxes on speculative sales

PalmMÁS per Palma has presented two proposals to "stop real estate speculators" and to only allow the purchase of homes for residential use or social rental in the city, along with a tax increase for those who make "speculative sales." The pro-independence party has criticized the PP and PSOE for being "incapable" of implementing "any truly effective measures to curb speculation in this area" and warns that the problem "is not caused by technical reasons but by a lack of political will," as MÁS explained in a statement. "The data is outrageous, and the Administration has legal tools to provide solutions. What is lacking is political courage," stated the spokesperson for MÉS per Palma, Neus Truyol. In this regard, she pointed out that Palma should not be a place where "a few profit, nor a dead end for the majority," and therefore asserted that "homes are for living in, not for speculation."

The first of MÉS's proposals for Palma calls for the city to be declared a stressed residential market zone. Within this framework, the party also proposes that only homes intended for primary residence or social rental be permitted for purchase. "This would prevent the housing stock from being captured by speculative purchases. When Palma's rents are strained, you can't govern as if nothing is happening," argued Vicenç Vidal, a member of parliament for Sumar MÁS.

At the same time, he maintained that housing is "for living" and, in his opinion, the rule should be that "whoever buys must reside there or put it up for social rental."

Surcharges of up to 60% on capital gains tax

The second measure proposed by MÉS per Palma is to promote tax reform so that the rapid resale of homes, which they have pointed out "fuels speculation," becomes more expensive and generates significantly higher taxes. They argue that this should be achieved through progressive surcharges on income tax and capital gains tax, depending on the length of ownership. In the case of a sale before three years—which they have defined as "ultra-speculation"—they have proposed a 60% surcharge on the profit. In the case of a sale between three and five years—also considered "speculation"—there would be a surcharge of between 40% and 50%. Similarly, they have proposed "additional surcharges" for large property owners and "earmarked revenue" to expand the public stock of social rental housing through construction, purchase, and renovation.

In this regard, they gave the example of buying a home for €600,000 and selling it a year later for €1 million; the profit would be €400,000. MÁS explained that, under the current system, the seller's taxes would amount to almost €100,000 in personal income tax (IRPF) on the capital gain and about €2,000 in municipal capital gains tax. The total would be €102,000, equivalent to 25% of the profit from the speculative sale.

A surcharge would also be added to the municipal capital gains tax, increasing it to €10,000. The total would be €350,000, equivalent to 87% of the profit from the speculative sale. "Today, a speculator can earn €300,000 just by buying and selling an apartment within the next year. With MÁS's proposal, quick reselling would cease to be profitable. If speculation becomes expensive, families win," Vidal explained.