Elias Amor Critiques Cuba's Housing Law 187: "It Won't Solve the Problem"

A new housing law, dubbed Law 187, was unveiled this Wednesday in Cuba's Official Gazette and is set to take effect on October 21. Although it has stirred hopes among both residents of the island and the Cuban diaspora, economist Elias Amor warns that the legislation is doomed to fail. As long as the state maintains its grip on the real estate market, no legal reform will rectify Cuba's dire housing crisis.

In a conversation with Tania Costa, Amor bluntly summarized his assessment: "With all due respect, this law is utterly useless. Even if property prices in Cuba are low enough to attract foreigners, there is a law... that prohibits owning more than two homes."

This restriction—two properties plus one additional vacation home—is, according to the economist, the Achilles' heel of the entire legislation. For investors seeking large-scale returns, this cap is a non-starter. "If you were considering investing in real estate, forget about Cuba because you're limited to two homes and one vacation property," Amor stated. He further illustrated, "A Spaniard, for instance, who wants to purchase 20 or 30 homes... that person has no reason to buy in Cuba."

It's precisely the large-scale real estate funds and investors, capable of purchasing numerous properties, who could inject much-needed capital into the crumbling sector. By excluding them, the law closes off the only private financing source that could significantly impact Cuba's housing deficit of over 929,000 homes.

The housing stock's decay, which such investment should address, is, in Amor's words, catastrophic. "Bathtubs are gone, bathrooms are gone. There's just a hole in the ground for people to relieve themselves," he described, referencing the state of many Cuban homes. He warns that without a drastic policy shift, this grim picture won't change: "Without a real 180-degree policy shift, this disaster will persist."

The statistics back up this grim assessment. Approximately 1,000 buildings collapse annually in Havana, 35% of the country's housing stock is in poor or fair condition, and in 2025, only 2,382 homes were built out of the 10,795 planned, a mere 22% of the target.

The new law, passed by the National Assembly on July 30 and touted as the most significant housing reform in nearly four decades, introduces changes like eliminating property confiscation for emigrants, recognizing inheritance rights, and creating housing cooperatives. However, Amor emphasizes these are merely superficial improvements unless the state relinquishes control to the private sector: "As long as housing is controlled, directed, and ordered by the state rather than the private sector, it won't become a sufficiently developmental sector in Cuba's economy."

The broader economic context exacerbates the situation. Cuba's annual inflation reached 28.5% in September 2026, according to the National Office of Statistics and Information, and Amor predicts it will end the year between 35% and 40%. This rate, he argues, "destroys savings, pensions, and minimum wages." Such hyperinflation renders the subsidies and loans promised by the law to young people and vulnerable families unfeasible, given Cuba's chronic budget deficit.

"In the United States, Spain, or Europe, we get alarmed over a 4% inflation rate, and in Cuba, people are enduring seven times that price increase. I don't know how they manage to live," concludes the economist.