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    Crackdown on Property Speculators: Can the Left Convince Their Biggest Ally’s Housing Barons

    The Left submitted a bill on Friday to increase taxes on the rapid resale of real estate, commonly known as “flipping.” The main aim of the proposed legislation is to raise the tax rate on the sale of apartments shortly after purchase. Will the Left manage to convince their largest coalition partner? It’s not so straightforward, considering, for example, that a member of the Civic Platform (Platforma Obywatelska), and Deputy Minister of State Assets, Robert Kropiwnicki himself owns… eleven apartments. And he is not the only property baron within that party.

    “Flipping” refers to the purchase of a property, superficial renovation, and resale for profit. According to the Left, the activities of flippers are the main factor driving demand for real estate, leading to rapid increases in prices.

    The bill for the amendment of the act on tax on civil law transactions, submitted on Friday, was prepared jointly with the Warsaw-based movement “Miasto Jest Nasze” (The City Is Ours). The so-called anti-flipping law, as indicated in the rationale, would come into effect on January 1, 2025.

    The proposed legislation envisages a change in the tax rate on civil law transactions (PCC), which currently stands at 2 percent for the sale of real estate. The Left proposes that the tax increase to 10 percent when the apartment is sold within a year of purchase. The PCC rate for individuals selling an apartment before two years from the purchase would be 6 percent, and before three years – 4 percent.

    The bill also proposes the introduction of an additional tax for property owners who purchase a third or subsequent residential property within a five-year period from the end of the year in which they bought their first apartment. The purchase of a third property would be additionally taxed at a PCC rate of 3 percent, the fourth property at a PCC rate of 4 percent, and the fifth and subsequent properties at a PCC rate of 5 percent.

    Will the owner of 11 apartments vote in favor? Purchasing additional properties will be made more difficult.

    We speak of Robert Kropiwnicki, a member of the Civic Platform and the Deputy Minister of State Assets. While the politician legally declares his owned properties in his asset declaration, he is reluctant to discuss them publicly.

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