The National Association of Property Owners and the Lisbon Association of Property Owners highlight that the unfreezing of rental contracts prior to 1990 (the so-called old rents) “is an essential measure”, but note that the OE2025 proposal, only includes “a few very vague paragraphs” on the topic.

In the OE2025 report, the Government assumes the intention of making “adjustment” proposals to the legislation relating to leasing, namely to “correct the distortions created in recent years”.

Specifically, it commits to taking “the necessary measures to complete the transition processes of pre-1990 residential leases in order to restore justice.”

The lease contracts in question have been frozen for more than a decade, and the previous socialist government decided to suspend its transition to the New Urban Lease Regime (NRAU), the law that regulates the rental sector and which came into force in 2012.

Currently, this transition is suspended as long as tenants meet one of three requirements: being 65 years of age or older; have proven disability equal to or greater than 60%; or have an adjusted gross annual income of less than five times the national minimum wage (820 euros), which in 2024 corresponds to a total of 57,400 euros.

Although it is not clearly written that the Government will unfreeze old rents, owners read this “positive sign” in the OE2025 proposal.

The president of the Lisbon Owners Association, Luís Menezes Leitão, considers the unfreezing of rents “absolutely essential”, but emphasizes that the proposal “expresses only one intention”.

The president of the National Association of Owners, António Frias Marques, is also cautious: “So many things have already been promised, but from now on this will be put into practice…”, he said, remembering that similar signals “have already been given” in the past.

“Let’s wait”, he advises, highlighting, on the other hand, that “trust is something that, once lost, is rarely recovered”.