Understand how the city hall can allocate abandoned properties to popular housing, following the social function and expanding public housing projects.
The city hall of Vitória has regulated a new policy to recover abandoned properties and allocate them to different projects of collective interest, including popular housing and public housing initiatives. The measure is part of the Central Area Rehabilitation Program (ReAC), created by Municipal Decree No. 27,034, which seeks to revitalize the Historic Center of the capital of Espírito Santo, reduce property abandonment, and encourage new investments.
According to Portal Tempo Novo on July 28, 2026, although the initiative has generated significant repercussion, it does not allow the municipal administration to immediately take a property from its owner. The procedure requires an administrative process, proof of abandonment, right of defense, and compliance with the deadlines provided by law. The proposal is also aligned with the principle of the social function of property, as provided in the Federal Constitution and regulated by the City Statute.
How the city hall can take over abandoned properties
The decree establishes that the collection of abandoned properties can only occur within the Special Zone of Urbanistic Interest 1 (ZEIU 1), an area that includes the Historic Center and other parts of the central region of Vitória.
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Before any action, the inspection must prove three conditions simultaneously:
- material abandonment of the property;
- absence of another person exercising possession;
- lack of interest from the owner in maintaining or using the property.
During inspections, signs such as broken doors and windows, accumulated garbage, debris, graffiti, tall grass, lack of maintenance, and even structural risks that endanger neighboring residents may be observed.
Another factor that may reinforce the characterization of abandonment is the accumulation of five years of unpaid municipal taxes, provided that this situation is accompanied by the absence of possession and lack of interest in recovering the property.
Right of defense remains guaranteed to the owner
Despite the repercussion of the measure, the loss of the property will not be automatic. The Department of City Development and Housing must officially notify the registered owner in the municipality before any decision.
After receiving the communication, the owner will have 30 days to present a defense and demonstrate that they use, conserve, or intend to recover the property.
If the responsible party cannot be located, the municipality may publish a notice in the Official Gazette and also on its official portal. Only after all these steps and proof of abandonment can the provisional collection decree be published.
Even so, the legislation still grants a period of three years for the owner to regularize the situation, settle any debts, and reimburse improvements made by the public authority. Only after this period can the property be definitively incorporated into the municipal assets.
Social housing could be one of the destinations for the properties
After the provisional collection, the municipality may use the properties in various actions provided by ReAC. Among them are:
- Social housing programs;
- Public housing projects;
- Implementation of public services;
- Commercial activities;
- Private enterprises;
- Initiatives aimed at economic development.
The decree makes it clear, however, that not all properties will be exclusively allocated to housing. Each property will be analyzed individually, considering location, state of conservation, and urban planning needs.
The social function of property guides the new urban policy
The principle of social function dictates that urban property should not remain abandoned when its use can benefit the community.
This understanding is provided for in the Federal Constitution and also in the City Statute, which offers municipalities tools to combat vacant, degraded, or underutilized properties.
In practice, the proposal seeks to recover areas that already have complete infrastructure, bringing housing, commerce, services, and job opportunities closer together in the same region.
Program aims to create up to 11,000 new homes
According to data released by the City of Vitória, the Central Area Rehabilitation Program could enable between 8,000 and 11,000 new homes. The municipal administration also projects:
- arrival of up to 27,500 new residents to the central region;
- more than R$ 6 billion in private investments.
The expectation is that part of these new ventures will be allocated to Social Interest Housing, taking advantage of currently unused buildings and land.
In recent decades, the Historic Center has lost residents while several abandoned properties have come to occupy areas that already have public transportation, schools, commerce, cultural facilities, and essential services.
Progressive IPTU will be used before more rigorous measures
The collection does not represent the first mechanism provided by the legislation. Initially, the municipality may apply the Compulsory Parceling, Building or Use (PEUC), requiring the owner to give an appropriate purpose to the property.
If this does not happen, the Progressive IPTU Over Time may be applied, gradually increasing the tax charge while the property remains without fulfilling its social function.
Only after exhausting the steps provided in the legislation can more severe measures be adopted.
Faster licensing should encourage new investments
In addition to the rules aimed at abandoned properties, the decree also creates mechanisms to accelerate retrofit, restoration, rehabilitation, and new construction projects in the central region.
In certain situations, the documentation presented may automatically generate the Building Permit, provided that the responsible professional technically assumes the information submitted and complies with all urban regulations.
The simplification seeks to reduce bureaucracy and stimulate investors interested in recovering old properties or developing new ventures.
Historical heritage will remain protected during revitalization
Another important point of the program is the preservation of historical heritage.
The decree allows for the creation of Neighborhood Protection Perimeters for Listed Properties, establishing technical criteria to limit height, occupation, and characteristics of new constructions near churches, monuments, and historical buildings.
The mechanism of Transfer of Constructive Potential was also created, which will allow owners to sell part of the unused construction potential to help finance restoration and preservation works.
What changes for residents and owners
The new policy represents an attempt to balance the right to property with the collective interest.
By encouraging the recovery of abandoned properties, expanding affordable housing projects, strengthening public housing, and ensuring the fulfillment of the property’s social function, the city hall aims to revitalize a region that has lost residents over the years but still has consolidated urban infrastructure.
Despite the national repercussion, the new rules apply, at this first moment, only to the Special Zone of Urbanistic Interest 1, located in the Center of Vitória. Each case will continue to be analyzed individually, respecting due legal process and ensuring the owner the right to defense before any final decision.
