Revolutionary App Maps Lisbon's Empty Homes Amid Housing Crisis

Two citizens have launched Devolutos, a "civic and collaborative" app that maps empty houses in Lisbon. The goal is to highlight the paradox of numerous vacant homes during a severe housing crisis.

Portugal is facing one of its worst housing crises in recent history, with families being evicted from their neighborhoods, unaffordable rents, and a youth without prospects of autonomy. Yet, amidst talks of a 'lack of supply,' a glaring reality remains in the shadows: Lisbon has thousands of empty homes.

Nelson Vassalo and Hugo Conceição, concerned citizens, developed Devolutos, available for Android, iOS, and browsers, to map abandoned buildings in Lisbon. This tool aims to shed light on underutilized or abandoned housing stock during a social crisis.

The app, created with activists, designers, and programmers, is a collaborative tool to denounce urban neglect and demand adequate public policies.

The Absurdity of 'So Many Houses Without People and So Many People Without Houses'

According to 2021 Census data, 10.7% of family homes in Lisbon's metropolitan area are empty, with Lisbon leading at 14.9%. Nationally, Portugal has about 723,000 empty or abandoned houses, a startling figure in the OECD context where Portugal has the most houses per capita but also the hardest time buying a home.

Lisbon's council reports nearly 48,000 empty homes. "Housing cannot remain a speculative commodity. The right to housing requires ending the absurdity of empty homes alongside homelessness," says Vassalo.

Photographing Facades Is Legal

Devolutos empowers citizens to identify, map, and pressure for the recovery of abandoned properties. Users can photograph facades from public spaces, contributing to a dynamic, collaborative map that highlights the housing paradox.

Despite legal clarity on photographing facades, the National Association of Property Owners has threatened legal action against Devolutos' creators.

In its first week, over 1,000 vacant homes were marked in Lisbon, a mere 2% of the city's estimated 48,000 empty properties and a fraction of Portugal's 723,000.

Devolutos is free on Android, iOS, and web. Future updates will expand coverage nationwide. This non-commercial, citizen-led initiative operates without profit motives.