Activists deemed the measure "insufficient". Though rental prices may fall after the outbreak as demand for holiday lets dissipates, housing groups argue incomes are unlikely to recover fast enough for people to repay the debt.
"When the state of emergency ends people will face an economic crisis," they said. "How will those who are unemployed start to pay rent again?" Rents have skyrocketed in Portugal in recent years due to the rise of holiday apartments and controversial schemes such as the "golden visa" - granting residence to non-EU property buyers - while salaries remained almost unchanged.
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The state of emergency was declared on March 18 and extended on Thursday by 15 days. If you cherished this short article and you would like to acquire extra details pertaining to
portugal golden visa kindly go to the webpage. It was not clear how much longer it will last, but Prime Minister Antonio Costa said on Wednesday restrictive measures could be in place for months as the country approaches an expected plateau of coronavirus cases at the end of May.
A quarter of the population is on the lowest minimum wage in Western Europe of just 635 euros a month, with household savings at approximately 4.9%, according to Eurostat - one of the lowest rates in Europe.
LISBON, April 2 (Reuters) - Portugal's parliament approved on Thursday the suspension of rents for vulnerable households and cash-strapped small firms during the coronavirus outbreak, but rights groups warned that the measure might only delay a looming housing crisis.
"This pandemic crisis puts people's right to work and housing at risk. We expect a housing crisis," said Vasco Barata, from the Plataforma Solidaria group. "That's what worries us." (Reporting by Victoria Waldersee, Catarina Demony, editing by Andrei Khalip)