[harperlee]

No, I got it. I just think that would mainly mean investors exit the market.

If it is less profitable, they either further raise the prices or they get out of the market; the ratio of those two options depends on price elasticity. And prices don't have a lot of room to grow further in my opinion... unless of course the wages grow quickly (and minimum wage indeed has done it in the last 5 years). But then the country needs to be more productive or people get poor (fired!), which is also not good for the renting business, etc.

At the end of the day you're betting on the spanish market either squeezing people further, or gaining productivity real quick. And real estate is not very liquid, yet is typically long-term, and those investors are risk averse. So... there will be some that will exit the market.

[Manuel_D]

And what happens when people leave the rental market? Fewer apartments for rent. And what happens to rental prices when there's a scarcity of apartments to rent? Prices go up.

[harperlee]

Well, no one can pack the apartment and leave the country. At worst they are left unoccupied, but that's a lot of money to have it parked, and can be discouraged with taxes; so alternatively people sell them... so buy and rent eventually go down.

[Manuel_D]

And what will the buyers do with the apartments? Rent them? Well, then they'll either have to spend money on security or price the risk of okupas into the rent. In either case rent goes up.

This is as nonsensical as the proposals in San Francisco to prohibit the construction of apartments to try and reduce rent. Dissuading people from renting out apartments reduces the supply apartments. There is zero possibility this results in better rental prices.

[zrn900]

> And what will the buyers do with the apartments? Rent them?

Yes.

> This is as nonsensical as the proposals

Its not nonsensical. Its what is happening. Use it or lose it. Works. Find a good tenant, rent it for decades - like how it is supposed to be.

[Manuel_D]

Again, the comment you responded to explains how this makes it more risky and less profitable to rent out apartments. It's dissuading people from renting:

> you're also making it more risky and thus less profitable to buy and rent out apartments

When something becomes riskier, fewer people do it unless there's some other incentive.

A vacancy tax could incentivize renting, buy enabling squatters does nothing but making rentals more risky. The only thing that can solve a shortage is increased supply or reduced demand. The latter is not feasible since people need housing. The former requires that land owners take the risk on renting out apartments, and anything that increases the risk means less people will do it.

> Find a good tenant

That's easier said than done. The better way to convince prospective renters to rent out their property is to make it easier to kick out bad tenants. If evictions are backlogged, then a landlord risks being stuck with a non paying tenant for a long time.

[zrn900]

> Again, the comment you responded to explains

This kind of thing baffles me. Im telling what is happening here. A guy on the internet refers to another on the internet who 'explains' to me that what is happening where I am in the actual reality is not real.

That's literally crazy. It feels like you people are preaching. Against the reality.

[carlosjobim]

When a renter buys an apartment or house to live in, that means the place they rented becomes vacant. It is the most basic math, addition and subtraction. Lower real estate prices means less renters and thus lower rents. Unless you conjure people into the country by immigration.

[peter335]

Yes, exactly. This is what I was getting at!

[Manuel_D]

You think a lot of Spaniards want higher rental prices?

Edit: ah, sorry I had mixed you up with the previous commenter.

[peter335]

Of course not, I think misguided policies like the one we’re talking about lead to higher rental prices

[zrn900]

> No, I got it. I just think that would mainly mean investors exit the market.

Great. They should get the hell out asap.