Cubans line up to buy, sell homes under new reform

Cubans line up to buy, sell homes under new reform
By Rosa Tania Valdes and Nelson Acosta
HAVANA | Fri Nov 11, 2011 6:15am EST

(Reuters) - Cubans lined up at notary offices and banks on Thursday to
do deals or lay the groundwork for them on the first day they could
legally buy and sell houses in more than half a century.

They said they welcomed the chance to finally make money off their
property in a step away from the doctrinaire communism they have lived
under since Cuba's 1959 revolution.

The change was the result of a reform announced last week by the
government, which is liberalizing the Soviet-style economy in hopes of
keeping one of the world's last communist states afloat.

Last month, it gave its citizens the right to freely buy and sell cars
for the first time since 1959.

Previously, Cubans could legally only trade their home for others in
what they call a "permuta, although often the transactions included
payments under the table.

Cubans said the reform offered something many have not had for a long
time -- a chance to improve their lives.

"This is now or never. It's an opportunity and you have to take risks to
get something better," said Margot, a state worker who only gave her
first name, as she stood in line at a notary office to do the paperwork
to sell her Havana home and buy another.

Bank workers said their offices were filled with people getting their
finances in order and seeking information in a first step toward buying
or selling property.

While there was general agreement that the new rules were a positive
step, there was less consensus on how much they would change life in Cuba.

The reform limits how much property they can own -- one house and one
vacation place -- because the government wants to prevent a
capitalistic-style accumulation of wealth.

Some said many people cannot sell their homes because they would have no
place to live.

"The people who will sell their homes are the ones that have more than
one house, which is not something that is very common. Most people have
one home and most of their family lives there," said office worker
Elizbet Reynoso.

HOUSING SHORTAGE

More than 80 percent of Cubans own their homes, but finding new housing
is not easy on the island of 11 million people.

The government has said at least 600,000 new units are needed to meet
demand.

One significant change under the new law is that people leaving Cuba
permanently can sell their homes or give them to family members, where
before they had to hand them over to the government.

The new rules were not viewed as particularly good news at Paseo del
Prado, a historic avenue in central Havana where Cubans have gone for
years to seek permutas in an informal market.

People who work illegally as agents facilitating the swaps said they
expected the number of permutas to decline.

"What the people want is to sell so they can get money. There are people
who have a large house, but don't have enough money to buy food," said
Santiago, an agent who preferred not to give his full name.

The business was already shifting to trying to match up buyers and
sellers, but that sellers were asking too much money, said Aristides,
another agent, who also declined to give his full name.

"People are coming that want to buy small apartments for $4,000 or
$5,000, but the prices being asked are several thousand above that," he
said. "Think about who in Cuba has that kind of money -- nobody."

The average Cuban earns just $18 a month, but experts believe the
opening of the housing market will attract money, particularly from
Cuban exiles who want good housing for their families in the homeland or
as a bet on Cuba's future.

They say the influx of capital will stimulate the economy by encouraging
home renovation and construction and giving Cubans money to put into
private businesses.

"One of my clients wants to sell an apartment he does not use for about
$10,000. He said that with half of that amount, he will be able to open
a coffee shop," said Aristides.

In another reform, the government is encouraging self-employment to
provide jobs for the 1 million workers it wants to cut from its bloated
payrolls. It reported recently that 338,000 people are now working for
themselves. (Writing and additional reporting by Jeff Franks; Editing by
Kevin Gray and Eric Beech)

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/11/uk-cuba-housing-idUSLNE7AA01P20111111