HAVANA, Jul 4, 2003 (IPS/GIN via COMTEX) -- "We live in a state of permanent stress, worrying about whether we'll have enough guests, or waiting for more restrictions to be slapped on," complained a 58-year-old Cuban woman who rents out two of the five bedrooms in her home, mainly to foreign tourists.
New rules for private landlords about to be put into effect by the socialist government of Fidel Castro have begun circulating among renters over the past few days, said the landlord, who agreed to talk to IPS on condition of anonymity.
The circular, dated June 5 and signed by the president of the National Institute of Housing, Victor Ramirez Ruiz, states that "negative tendencies and behaviors have emerged in the exercise of this activity that distort the very essence of renting."
The new provision, which is to go into effect shortly, as soon as it is published in the Official Journal, mentions -- as examples of "negative behaviors" -- the use of homes as "brothels", and the "excessive enrichment" of landlords.
"That is offensive," said the renter who was interviewed. "I am an honorable person who has worked all my life, and only after retiring did I decide to rent out rooms to improve the income of my large family."
The licence to rent rooms out to foreign tourists costs her $520 a month - $250 per room, plus $20 for the garage. In addition, at the start of each year, she must pay between $300 and $350 in taxes on the private income earned over the previous 12 months.
"Of course you earn something, no one does business to lose money. But there are months when I barely make enough to pay the set monthly fee. For most people, this is a way of living a little bit better, and has nothing to do with getting rich, much less with 'excessive enrichment'," she said.
It costs around $30 a day to rent a room in a private home in this Caribbean island nation of 11.2 million, while hotel rooms run from $40 to $150 a day, depending on quality, location, and range of services offered.
The new government resolution will create a tax that landlords will have to pay the state for providing meal service, even if renters insist that they do not serve meals to their guests.
Taxes will also begin to be charged on the common living spaces used by the residents of the house, under the government supposition that the lodgers also make use of those parts of the house.
Further, it will become illegal to rent out a room for less than 24 hours, or to rent out a room to more than two people. Nor will landlords be able to hire people from outside the family for work related to the renting of rooms.
Another new restriction is that authorization to rent out rooms will not be granted to homeowners who travel abroad for more than three months.
"Frankly, many landlords have the impression that they want us to stop renting, as if we did not contribute revenues to the country," said the source, who owns a beautiful home on the west side of Havana.
She and other renters who spoke with IPS said there are so many restrictions on their activity that "it is hard not to cross the line and break the rules."
"There are fines of up to $3,500 - now THAT is excessive!" said another source who did not want to be identified. She also complained about the unfair competition from unlicensed renters, "who can charge less because they don't pay taxes."
The Cuban government authorized the renting of private rooms in May 1997, thus legalizing an activity that was already widespread. "I began to rent out rooms about three years before it was officially authorized," said the source.
An economist who also asked not to be named said that in Havana, which receives the greatest number of visitors to the country, there are currently 2,705 people with licenses who rent - charging dollars - to foreigners, and 1,067 who charge pesos.
In addition there are an estimated 8,750 unlicensed renters around the country who charge pesos, and nearly 5,200 who charge dollars or other foreign currency. "On my block alone, there are three people who rent without paying taxes, against four of us who do," said the first source.
According to the economist's estimate, private renters in the Cuban capital, where 80 or 85 percent of all of the country's landlords are located, paid some six million dollars into the public coffers in 2000.
In his view, the government feels that the private landlords draw off foreign tourism revenues from the state by offering cheaper rooms than those available in hotels, which are owned, or partially owned, by the government.
"Private renters earn income that escapes the hands of the state, which wants to capture all revenues," said the economist.
Official statistics indicate that there are currently 40,000 rooms in a total of 266 hotels catering to foreign tourists in Cuba, 40 percent of which are four or five-star hotels.
The economist also said that the number of licenses has been reduced in the past few years for all free enterprise activities, although the number of people who run privately-owned businesses or services without being officially registered has not shrunk.
The total number of licenses granted by the state for personal initiative fell from 208,500 in 1995 to 153,800 in 2001 and 100,000 today, he said.
Copyright (c) 2003 IPS-Inter Press Service. All Rights Reserved.
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