The Malta Developers Association is planning to launch a sustained campaign to change a recently launched rent reform following their robust statement last Wednesday, informed sources have told Lovin Malta.

In a strong statement, MDA claimed that just two months into the new system, the rental market was already showing “a significant dip” and that landowners are “increasingly reluctant” to rent out under the “restrictive regime”.

“It’s been less than six weeks since the law came into force but the MDA somehow already have comprehensive data on the issue. It’s impossible and just a clear attempt to start setting their agenda on the issue,” sources said. 

They claimed that, following the statement, the MDA was gearing up to use all its influence to ensure the law is bent to their favour. History seems to agree with them.

Meanwhile, they also rubbished MDA’s claims, insisting that close to 3,000 properties have already been registered with the Housing Authority.

“Believe me, they’re not doing this because they care about everyday landlords.  It’s only the big players they care about,” sources said.

They explained that at the end of the day the regulations were introduced because the rental industry was rampant with abuss and needed to be addressed.

The new regulations, which will be headed by the Housing Authority, essentially encourages landlords to register their rental properties with the authorities and imposes stricter terms on contracts and the conduct on both landlords and tenants.

Landlords will need to register each rental contract. It must include details like the rental agreement and the price per room.

Increases in price can only happen once a year and cannot be increased by more than 5%.

No contracts can be terminated and tenants will also need to be notified at least 3 months before their contracts expire. If not, the contract will roll-on. Tenants will also need to notify the landlords before they intend to leave.

People failing to follow the regulations can face a fine of between €2,500 and €10,000.

The MDA was against the reform long before its inception, raising alarms in November that they believed the new laws restricted landlords. It remains to be seen whether their might will be proven right.