Ribeira Seca accumulates emigrants' shuttered homes as the island searches for tenants for its empty houses

Closed houses, not abandoned ones

Well-maintained homes with their shutters down almost all year round, owned by emigrants.

A "dormant" housing stock

The stock remains neither occupied nor available to the market.

Attempts to bring these homes into use

Sentimental attachment outweighs the returns from renting.

The island, caught between two realities

Calls are growing for tax incentives for emigrant owners who let out their houses.

An emigration story spanning more than a century

São Jorge went through successive waves of emigration to the United States and Canada from the late 19th century onwards, particularly after agricultural crises struck the island. Many families who left at the time kept their houses in Ribeira Seca as a link to their homeland. Generations already born in North America continue to hold onto these properties through inheritance, even as their ties to the island grow more distant. This pattern repeats in several inland parishes on the island.

The contrast with Velas and Calheta

Unlike the urban centres of Velas and Calheta, where demand for year-round housing is more active, Ribeira Seca retains a markedly seasonal profile. The streets fill with activity in summer, when many emigrants return on holiday, and are left practically empty the rest of the year. Local shopkeepers notice the difference in takings between high and low season. The parish functions almost as a collective second home rather than a stable population centre.

Legal and practical obstacles

Bringing these homes into the rental market is not just a matter of owners' willingness; it also runs into pending inheritance procedures among several heirs scattered across different countries. Settling a house's ownership can take years when the owners are spread between the islands and abroad. Local property managers note that this legal complexity discourages even those who would be willing to rent out their homes. The regional administration is looking at ways to simplify some of these procedures.

Perspectives from the regional government

Officials from the Governo Regional dos Açores have cited Ribeira Seca as an example of a phenomenon affecting several islands in the archipelago with a strong emigrant tradition. Plans are being studied for specific incentives for absent owners who decide to put their homes onto the long-term rental market. For now, there is no firm timetable for such measures. Residents' associations insist that any solution must respect the sentimental value these houses hold for emigrant families.