📌 Rent control and legal uncertainty: when the owner prefers to wait

Real estate

pol | June 1, 2025, 11:25 a.m.

With the regulation of rents, the market faces a double problem. On the one hand, the high demand far exceeds the supply and only the most solvent end up getting an apartment. On the other hand, there is an added factor that further slows down owners: legal and legislative uncertainty .

👉 Why is this happening?
Recent policies have clearly favored the tenant in the event of a dispute, with long and cumbersome processes to evict a defaulting tenant and rules that put the landlord at a disadvantage. This creates a very high risk: if the tenant stops paying—whether out of necessity or to take advantage of them—the landlord can be trapped for months or years without income and without getting the apartment back.

💡 The result?
Many owners, faced with this situation:
– They prefer not to rent and keep the apartment empty, waiting for legislative changes.
– They prioritize profiles with more financial guarantees, which automatically excludes those who really need help.
– They are becoming increasingly demanding of candidates, increasing competition among tenants.

🌍 International examples: rent control failures
📍 Berlin (Germany): In 2020, a rent cap (Mietendeckel) was passed that temporarily reduced the price of new apartments. The result? New housing construction plummeted, many owners withdrew apartments from the market or sold them, and the Constitutional Court eventually overturned the measure as unconstitutional.
📍 San Francisco (USA): Rent controls in place since the 1970s have skyrocketed the prices of new homes and created a parallel market, with less supply and more expensive prices.
📍 Stockholm (Sweden): A regulated rental system has generated a waiting list of more than 10 years and a black market for subletting.

💼 What can ImmoGirona do for the owner?
In this complex context, ImmoGirona helps owners to:
✅ Choose candidates with the most economic and legal guarantees, minimizing risks of non-payment.
✅ Advise on documentation and contracts to protect the owner's rights within the current legal framework.
✅ Manage legal processes in the event of non-payments or conflicts with the tenant.
✅ Choose the best non-payment insurance: analyzing the available options, comparing coverage and prices, and advising when and how to take it out to have maximum protection from day one.
✅ Offer peace of mind with comprehensive and personalized management.

🤝 What can ImmoGirona do for the tenant?
In such a competitive market, we also ensure that the tenant:
✅ Be able to access apartments with guarantees and well-managed, avoiding unpleasant surprises.
✅ Find homes that meet the required legal and quality requirements.
✅ Have support with the necessary documentation and advice to formalize the contract clearly and securely.
✅ Be able to express your needs and resolve incidents quickly, thanks to the personalized management we offer.

❌ Conclusion:
Price regulation, coupled with legal uncertainty, not only does not solve the problem of access to housing, but creates more obstacles. Without balanced laws that also protect the owner, the market is distorted and, in the end, those who really need an apartment find themselves even further behind in the queue.