Loulé mayor blames foreigners for high property prices

Paul Rees 03 January 2017

LouleCamaraBuilding Loulé’s mayor wants to increase the land available for construction in many of the council area’s villages to help stop communities fading away.

"You have to create jobs and housing to stop the depopulation of rural areas," says Vítor Aleixo, who is convinced that an essential part of the solution is to increase the building zone around villages by reviewing and altering the hallowed Municipal Master Plan (PDM).

"Almost 90% of the municipality of Loulé has conditions that impede construction with the Natura 2000 area occupying 51% of the territory, ecological land covering 14% and the agricultural land another 13%," says Aleixo, adding that "Natura 2000 means nothing can be built, and for ecological and agricultural zones, building is allowable as long as there already is a ruin and a favorable opinion from various controlling bodies."

"It is not a peculiarity of Loulé, it is a characteristic of the Algarve", said Aleixo in an interview with Público.

Many people, especially the young, cannot afford to live in the Loulé area as its average property price of €206,857 is way over the national average €87,11, and an Algarve value of €133,510, inflated, says the mayor, “by foreigners,” omitting to mention that it is these very foreigners which pay the high property and water rates for which Loulé is noted.

Aleixo, in this 2017 local council election year, says he is going to "review the PDM and increase the perimeter of villages in the hills."

"Sometimes there are young people who want to set themselves up in places they have inherited and face serious administrative barriers."

The mayor does not rule out the possibility of creating a housing package to help people in the most unpopulated areas.

The council already has been buying vacant or ruined houses to fix up and let out in the village of Ameixial for which it has applied for an EU grant.

The Algarve’s mayors this year will be announcing all sorts of vote-winning initiatives focusing on children, the young, pensioners and schools which, when they are re-elected, quietly will be dropped as "too expensive, no grant available, administrative problems..."

Aleixo is on safe political ground in slagging off foreigners as few foreign residents register to vote.

Comments

+1 #13 Mauro 2017-05-15 18:19

Well dear president! I have a land with a ruin in Loule, with documents, and registrated! Guess what, your lovely bullshit arquitects and burocratic system dont allow me to build! I would love to settle down, but that will not happen, neither you will get my vote!

+1 #12 Ed 2017-01-08 08:46

You can vote in local elections ...

You need to hold a Residencia document. Many choose not to apply for a Residencia and hence will not be allowed to vote.

+1 #11 Another blimy expat 2017-01-08 08:14

Quoting Somebody of Almancil:

I say, I say, I say, what would Loulé be without foreigners??
How about they find away to permit foreigners that live and pay tax in Portugal to vote, not just in European elections but in ALL elections in the country...now that would be progress!!
Anyone to second that?

You can vote in local elections ... http://asmaa-algarve.org/en/campaigns/take-action-participa/what-can-you-do/fracking-on-your-doorstep-a-very-good-reason-for-expats-to-vote-in-portugal-municipal-elections-in-2017

And if you can, and how to register to vote here:
http://asmaa-algarve.org/en/component/k2/what-are-eu-citizens-voting-rights-in-portugal

+4 #10 Somebody of Almancil 2017-01-05 17:09

I say, I say, I say, what would Loulé be without foreigners?? If the foreigners leave, the whole of the infrastructure that the Loulé council is known for would collapse! Memberships at the 7 soon to be 8 key Golf Courses would dive and along with it local businesses that thrive from the foreign contingent that live here.
How about they find away to permit foreigners that live and pay tax in Portugal to vote, not just in European elections but in ALL elections in the country...now that would be progress!!
Anyone to second that? :-*

+5 #9 mj1 2017-01-04 20:16

well he is right, indeed the foreigners should move out and leave loule and its area...as we know the area will boom with all the entrepreneurs and industry as a result...there will lots of housing available for sure for all the local folk to enjoy the vibrant economy before joanny estrangero came to the area...cue fado music :cry:

+2 #8 dw 2017-01-04 18:22

The mayor appears only to have stated the blindingly obvious. Why is this contraversial and taken to be offensive? Maybe I'm missing something? The same thing is true in London too, ie foreigner ownership pushing up property prices.

+7 #7 Margaridaana 2017-01-04 15:30

Building houses in rural areas will not stop the young people leaving. Here in my village, all the youngsters have gone to work in Faro. It is impossible to 'create jobs' in rural areas and anyway, the jobs that may be available are not those which the younger people are looking for. They hope to better themselves in the cities, and who can blame them? The mayor of Loule should remember how much the expats actually put into the local coffers, it is not to be ignored.

+7 #6 Peter Booker 2017-01-04 13:03

I suspect that the mayor´s remarks, if they were made in England, would be controversial and possibly actionable. Is he whipping up a divisive feeling between Portuguese and us expats? I think that such remarks are the thin end of the wedge.

+7 #5 Ivan Hermans 2017-01-04 11:02

This looks like a very short term vision. In the long run, preserving nature in the Algarve at large will be the best investment for all people living there. A solution could be to provide subsidies for those that want to build on existing ruins and put strict criteria on the number of social housing permits versus bigger private mansions. Changing building laws in the Algarve will mean a decrease of foreign private investment and even departure of existing owners - is that what the mayor wants? Have a look at what happened in Spain and you will quickly change this bad idea...

+8 #4 BRUNO DE OLIVEIRA 2017-01-04 05:38

It's so unfortunate to see that this mediocre type of politicians come to live with such unprepared comments and idiotic solutions for no reason.
If this helps, I have house in the Algarve too and I do also feel like a foreigner...shame on the PORTUGUESE self proclamed politicians