Landowners paid measly rates under the country’s old rent laws have proposed that the government should subsidise tenants as part of a solution to put an end to lengthy and costly court cases.

An informal group of landlords has submitted a series of suggestions to the ministry of justice and has already held “productive” talks with the authorities about them.

The landowners, who discuss the issue on Facebook group The unjust Maltese pre-1995 rent laws, suggest a minimum rent benchmark be set of €2,000 a year for property regulated by the old regime and that government subsidises those who can’t afford to cover the rent.

A member of the group, who preferred to remain anonymous because of an ongoing court case, said the proposals were a result of “discussions between landlords” seeking a solution.

“We want fair compensation and we don’t care whether it comes from the tenant or the government,” the landlord told Times of Malta.

“Why should we constantly have to go to the rent regulations board or the court to change contracts? Why do we have to spend more money on lawyers every time tenants fail to uphold their end of the bargain?”

The Facebook group’s representative also argued that landlords who opt into the proposed scheme would, in turn, be tied down to that arrangement for a fixed period of 10 years to secure the tenant’s claim.

Another landlord, who also wished to remain anonymous, claims she has been waiting 20 years to be compensated fairly for her family’s property, earning €30 a month that is split between herself and two of her relatives.

“It becomes worse when you think about the fact that this tenant, who does have the means to pay more, will eventually pass on his claim to our land to his son or daughter. I think the inheritance of lease agreements should be discontinued,” she argued.

It was unfair on her to pay 15 per cent tax on the €30, she added, pointing out that such a property would cost at least €900 a month to rent in that area.

We want fair compensation and we don’t care whether it comes from the tenant or the government

And if an owner wants to reclaim property and the tenant has somewhere else to live, then it should not take two decades to end the case.

“Successive governments have failed to address the situation and they have swept it under our rugs while pretending it isn’t a problem,” she added.

The Ministry for Justice said “the fundamental right of private property has been an issue for decades which was never satisfactorily addressed by successive administrations”.

The ministry’s spokesperson said the government understood the “fundamental sensitivity” of the issue and intended to find a framework that would be “a just remedy” for both parties.

The PN is also pressuring the government to find a solution to the issue, which also affects agriculture.

'Government should help farmers purchase land'

Farmers have spoken about their fears of eviction after a landmark constitutional court judgment last year ruled that the law on agricultural leases breached a landowner’s right to enjoy their property at full value.

“If we want to sustain agriculture and offer farmers a decent rent, the government should shoulder that burden, not us,” said the Facebook group representative.

The government, he noted, should help full-time farmers purchase the land they are working to make sure that agriculture is safeguarded while also ensuring landlords get compensation for selling.

“After all, no tenant will want to buy the land they work on if all they are paying is a few euros annually. If the government wants to keep agriculture going, then they should help farmers become owners of the land,” he said.

Another property owner in the group said he wanted to evict the tenant on his land for illegally constructing two garages and conducting a commercial farming work operation.

He said an enforcement notice had been slapped on the garages 20 years ago but nothing had been done since, preventing him from applying for any permits on his own land.

“We did not want to go to court because it takes years to reach a verdict and there are too many legal expenses involved,” he explained, adding that he was trying to settle with the tenant directly.

'We want our land back'

At current market rates, the land was worth €150 in rental income per tumolo, he added.

He also believes he should be entitled to a cut of the revenue generated by the produce grown on the land. All he gets is €15 per year for 8,300 sqm.

“If the president of the active farmers’ association or professor Alan Deidun were in our shoes, they would speak differently. We want our land back, no ifs or buts!” he said.

The owner was referring to concerns raised by the active farmers’ association in a newspaper article last month.

He was also referring to an online remark made by Deidun, who shared the same article on popular Facebook group ‘Are you being served? Malta.’

In his post, Deidun argued that full-time farmers are already struggling to keep up with market prices of land while questioning the morality of “handing over land that farmers have been working on all their lives to people who’ve never even touched soil with their bare hands”.