YEAR 2017 N.º 3

ISSN 2182-9845

The activity of operating a temporary accommodation establishment

Aristides Rodrigues de Almeida

Keywords

Temporary accommodation; Requirements; Operating conditions; Owner of the establishment; License of use; horizontal property; Use for housing.

Abstract

The temporary accommodation is a multifaceted reality that has acquired in recent years a significant dimension in the use of real estate for temporary accommodation of tourists outside the traditional hotel circuit, which inevitably generated social and legal controversy. The national legislature recognized and validated the occurrence to ensure tax revenues. But by creating the legal regime it intentionally lacked to regulate essential aspects of this activity, when exercised in horizontally owned buildings. Some issues stand out, such as that related to the coexistence of local accommodation in buildings intended for housing, the allocation of expenses, or the responsibility of the owner of the establishment for the excesses of tourists disturbing the tranquility of the residents. Therefore, it is important to know the details of this legal regime and to test responses to such problems.  As a starting point, it is accepted that the validation of the occurrence by the legislator makes it difficult to adopt bans on the temporary accommodation. And the dimension it currently assumes will hinder radical solutions that violate the trust of those who have relied on the existing legal regulations.