Only 3% rent increases for commercial properties in 2024

Legislation to continue imposing a 3% cap on commercial rent increases provides a trap for property owners and protection for business tenants. For commercial real estate, the imposition of a cap on rent adjustments continues while residential rents are increasing frantically. In particular, article 50 of the bill, "Organisational and procedural provisions for development, interventions to strengthen the fair development transition and other urgent provisions", provided that commercial real estate leases it is allowed from January 1, 2024, until December 31, 2024, adjustment of the rent amounting to a maximum of 3%, on the rent of the year 2023.

It is recalled that a similar ceiling was applied this year and also in 2022. The temporal extension of the ceiling on rent increases was made to protect commercial rents from the large increase in the Consumer Price Index (above 10%). The landlords, however, consider that the continuation of the CPI ceiling of 3% creates huge injustices, especially to the bona fide landlords, who rightly complain because they had kept their rents low for several years and are now being "punished" for their attitude.

Through POMIDA, the owners claim that "this regulation is an unacceptable intervention of an anti-social nature since it is directed against small and medium-sized property, unilaterally and without any counterweight in its favour, such as the now necessary reduction in rent taxation, while at the same time leaving the large property undisturbed property and the State!".

They believe that the ceiling on rent increases and the forced extension of the duration of these leases puts the "tenancy", which has been in effect for decades in the country, out of the window.

The professional bodies, for their part, however, stress that the extension of the validity of the measure in question will be a barrier for businesses in their attempt to survive in a difficult situation.

It is recalled that leases with a lessor are excluded from this regulation:

a) Real Estate Investment Company Anonymities,
b) companies belonging to Alternative Investment Organizations,
c) commercial centre operators with a surface area of ​​at least 15,000 sq.m.
d) Companies are 100% owned by the State and their subsidiaries.

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