The PSD/CDS-PP/IL coalition candidate, Pedro Duarte, said he will put the more than 20,000 vacant homes in Porto on the moderate rental market, and, considering the measures presented by the government this week, he considered it important to have tax benefits for landlords, but also support for tenants. Regarding the municipal affordable rental program, he said it is aligned with the rates currently practiced by the city government.

Manuel Pizarro, head of the Socialist Party (PS), argued that the problem lies in the lack of affordable housing supply. He promised to build 5,000 new homes with moderate rents and sought to discredit the possibility of relying on vacant homes, arguing that putting them on the market would be a lengthy process.

Diana Ferreira, from the CDU (PCP/PEV), pointed to tourism as "one of the factors" hindering access to affordable housing, but did not dismiss the government's responsibility for the lack of solutions.

Independent candidate Filipe Araújo, who is supported by the PAN, criticized "those who promise the world and the moon" and pledged to create a "task force" to resolve the problem and expedite the city's current "Porto Solidário" project, a two-year income and bank loan support program for people experiencing financial difficulties.

Criticism

For Chega, Miguel Corte-Real criticized the attempt to solve the problem "with an auction of promises" and said he believes it is necessary to "resolve the bureaucracy" for those who want to build houses in the city, while also defending the maintenance of the "Porto Solidário" program.

The leader of the Left Bloc, Sérgio Aires, lamented that the housing issue is overlooked when addressing the homeless and those on waiting lists for social housing. He advocated for a focus on affordable housing and demanded that projects be developed on municipal land in Monte Pedral (Historic Center) and Monte da Bela (Campanhã), for which the city has already launched public tenders, but which have remained unfilled.

Hélder Sousa, from Livre, warned that the problem is not limited to the lack of housing, but also to the poor living conditions of many families, proposing the creation of a municipal plan to combat energy poverty. The candidate wants 30% of housing to be removed from the speculative market and, to achieve this, advocated partnerships with public institutions and cooperatives.

Nuno Cardoso (NC/PPM) warned of the number of elderly people "living isolated" in the city and proposed the creation of a public incubator for cooperatives and providing them with municipal land for construction.

Immigrants

Frederico Duarte Carvalho, of the ADN party, blamed immigrants for price increases, citing situations where "10 people live in the same house" as examples and blaming recent administrations for this problem.

For Volt, Guilherme Alexandre Jorge said he was the only one who exemplified the desire of young people to "be able to emancipate themselves," since he is unable to leave the house where he lives with his family, and advocated for a commitment to affordable housing and cooperatives.

Luís Tinoco Azevedo, a candidate for the PLS (Socialist Party of Social Development), believes it is important to involve "all stakeholders" to increase construction. He argued that "local accommodations should not be demonized" and that hotels should also be included in the city's containment measures, which have their own municipal regulations for the AL (Social Housing Association).

Maria Amélia Costa, a member of the PTP (Socialist Party of Socialist Party), says there are municipal lands that can be used for construction and emphasized the importance of "attracting private investment" by creating a municipal company "to finance these properties to moderate the rent we want to make more affordable."

The current council is composed of a majority of six elected members from Rui Moreira's movement and one independent councillor. The other two elected members are from the PS (Socialist Party of Socialist Party), two from the PSD (Social Democratic Party of Socialist Party), one from the CDU (Social Democratic Party of Socialist Party), and one from the BE (Socialist Party of Socialist Party).

The municipal elections take place on October 12.