State and municipalities

Carinthia presses ahead with vacancy tax

The vacancy tax is intended to partially solve the housing problem.

(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

New federal law on unused apartments is to be implemented quickly in Carinthia. However, the Chamber of Commerce thinks little of the new plans and calls for revitalization.

Up to 53,000 apartments are vacant in Carinthia (we reported). It has not yet been possible to ascertain what percentage of these are attributable to real estate speculators. But all those who were hoping for big business with vacant properties will soon be asked to pay. The National Council's decision to allow the federal states to levy a vacancy tax in future is intended to declare war on speculators.

Austria urgently needs a universal tenancy law with effective rent regulations. The federal government announced this in its own program, but has not yet implemented it.

Gaby Schaunig, Wohnbaureferentin des Landes Kärnten

Still no panacea
In Carinthia, a model for this is to be developed by the end of the year. "Our aim is to develop a model in coordination with the coalition partner and the Association of Towns and Municipalities that is practicable in terms of recording vacancies and achieves the desired effect," says Carinthia's housing officer Gaby Schaunig (SP). However, she does not consider the federal law to be a panacea. After all, it will not solve the general housing problem.

Paul Perkonig, Chairman of the Real Estate and Property Trustees Section of the Chamber of Commerce, shares Schaunig's view: "The causes of vacancies are manifold and range from outdated buildings and high investment costs to structural changes and speculation." Especially in rural areas, the revitalization of properties must be promoted in order to create affordable living space.