Charles Xuereb on why Malta needs a plan for property

The Trident Estates CEO discusses how better buildings and coordinated infrastructure can improve affordability and the places where people live and work.

For Charles Xuereb, the value of a property is tested in daily use. A workplace has to help employers recruit and retain staff. Across Malta, the location of homes and jobs also shapes how much time people spend travelling and what it costs them to live and work.

In this MBJ 1:1 interview, the Chief Executive Officer of Trident Estates p.l.c. connects those decisions to a wider question about the country’s limited land. He argues for better use of existing buildings and infrastructure that keeps pace with development. His measure of success is the quality of the places Malta creates, with affordability and public trust central to that assessment.

What employers need from a building

We begin with what makes commercial premises attractive beyond their address and appearance. Xuereb sees the workplace as part of what an employer offers its people, with practical consequences for owners who fail to invest.

“Companies do not lease square metres but they rent their ability to recruit people, retain them and get the best out of them. Almost a third of Malta’s residents are now foreign nationals and talent moves easily, so the workplace has become part of what an employer offers.

“In my experience, four things weigh more than the address. First is how people get there and what is on offer: parking, public transport, EV charging, eateries, amenities, childcare and green space. Employers are already adapting. One of the leading banks in Malta, for example, reports that one in four of its staff used flexible working last year and it rewards people who commute sustainably. Buildings have to support those choices. Second is the indoor environment, meaning air quality, daylight, acoustics and temperature, which tenants increasingly measure for themselves. Third is flexibility with floor plates and lease terms that accept that businesses change. Fourth is reliability and running cost: resilient power, good connectivity, sound energy performance and a landlord who picks up the phone.

“Overseas markets show where this is heading. In Dublin, overall office vacancy recently stood above 14%, while vacancy in the best-in-class buildings was under 5%. There was plenty of space, just not enough of the right kind. Malta is moving in the same direction, and owners who don’t invest will see it first in empty floors.”

Making better use of existing buildings

The focus then shifts to the space Malta already has. Xuereb sees refurbishment as a way to meet demand while preserving the resources invested in existing buildings. He also wants the incentives around upgrading to reflect that value.

“Often, the most sustainable square metre is one we have already built. The 2021 Census found 81,613 dwellings that were vacant or used only seasonally, more than a quarter of the national stock, and close to 49,000 of them were in good condition. Add under-used offices, tired industrial premises and heritage buildings, and Malta has real capacity that doesn’t need another field or another storey.

“There are encouraging examples. The proposal to bring the former St Philip’s Hospital in Santa Venera, empty since 2012, back into use as a hospital and elderly care home shows how an idle building can be matched to a real need, in this case an ageing population.

“Refurbishment also makes environmental sense. Keeping a building’s structure and envelope retains around three-quarters of the carbon that went into constructing it, and the work is usually quicker and far less disruptive for neighbours, roads and landfill than demolition.

“The difficulty is that our system often makes it easier to pull down and build higher, than to upgrade well. I would rebalance that with quicker permits for good refurbishment, sensible flexibility on change of use, tax measures that reward bringing vacant property back to market, incentives to restore traditional buildings, and practical ways to unlock properties stuck in fragmented, inherited ownership. On an island of 316 square kilometres, upgrading should often be the first choice rather than the fallback.”

The costs that begin after construction

That concern with lasting value carries through to operating costs. When we turn to the decisions owners should make earlier, he points to the financial consequences of design choices over the life of a building.

“Construction cost is paid once but the operating cost is paid every year the building stands, and over its life that usually adds up to more than it cost to build. Most of those costs are fixed at the design stage.

“In our climate, cooling is the largest. Orientation, shading, the amount of glazing, insulation and rooftop renewables will shape energy bills for decades. Regulation points the same way. Under the revised EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, new buildings must be zero-emission from 2030, and minimum performance standards will gradually require the least efficient non-residential buildings to be upgraded. Inefficient buildings will become harder to rent and finance.

“Owners should also plan early for the maintenance and replacement of lifts, chillers, waterproofing and façades, and make sure that work can be done safely and affordably. Water is another one, since a reservoir or grey-water system costs little at design stage but a great deal to retrofit. Adaptability matters too. Good floor-to-ceiling heights and a sensible structural grid are what let a building change use later without being demolished. Finally, proper metering and building management systems, because you can’t manage what you don’t measure.

“A building that is cheap to build but expensive to run is a false economy. The tenant pays first but the owner pays later through vacancies.”

Bringing homes and jobs closer together

From individual buildings, the conversation moves to the relationship between residential and commercial development. For Xuereb, housing affordability is also an issue for employers, while the distance between homes and jobs adds pressure to daily travel.

“Communities work best when people can live, work and handle daily errands close together. Malta’s issue is less about the overall split between homes and offices and more where each ends up. We have business districts that go quiet after six in the evening, residential areas that empty by eight in the morning, and most people sitting in traffic in between.

“New housing supply is still mostly apartments, accounting for over 70% of dwellings, and often in villages where schools, open space, parking and shops have not kept pace. Planning Authority figures for 2024 point to a shortfall of roughly 4,400 parking spaces across about 1,500 permits, and the Malta Chamber has rightly questioned whether paying in lieu of parking still makes sense.

“Affordability has also slipped badly. Residential prices are up around 45% since 2020 with an average price reaching €238,000 last year. For employers, loan repayments now come up directly in salary negotiations and in whether talent decides to stay.

“A better balance means amenities inside business districts, and good-quality rental apartments close to the main employment hubs, so that fewer journeys are needed. It also needs stable policy, so that land isn’t pushed into whatever use pays best this year and then converted again a few years later.”

Planning infrastructure before adding density

The discussion of mobility leads to the infrastructure needed to support development. Xuereb argues that transport and utilities should guide where growth takes place, with predictable planning decisions helping owners and occupiers manage costs.

“Infrastructure should come before density, not chase after it. The population reached 588,254 at the end of 2025, yet most of our local plans date back to 2006. Development has simply outrun the plans meant to guide it.

“Transport is the most obvious gap. Private cars make up the large majority of road traffic, and independent estimates now put the cost of congestion above €1.1 billion a year. Experience here and abroad shows that widening roads mostly fills them with more cars. The better route is to link permitted densities to public transport capacity, invest in frequent mass transit and park-and-ride, use intelligent traffic management, and move on-street parking into well-placed multi-storey or underground facilities, with private investment where it helps.

“Property owners can contribute directly. The Malta Developers Association has suggested opening commercial car parks to the public outside business hours, and I think that is a practical idea that costs little and frees up street space in the evenings and at weekends.

“Utilities need the same forward planning, with power, water and sewerage capacity matched to growth. Above all, the planning system needs predictability. Knowing what can be built, and how long a decision will take, lowers risk, and a lower risk ends up as lower costs for occupiers and buyers. When development contributes towards infrastructure, that money should be visibly spent in the locality that hosts it.”

Making quality visible

Asked how the industry can build confidence in its properties, he turns to the evidence available to a buyer or tenant. His proposals place responsibility on developers and independent inspection, with records that stay with the building.

“Confidence comes from evidence, not marketing material. Contractor licensing, in force since July 2025, was an important step, but it should be a starting point.

“Three further measures would make a real difference. The first is mandatory latent defects or structural insurance on new buildings, as several European countries already require, so buyers and tenants are protected and insurers have their own reason to check quality on site. The second is independent inspection at key stages of construction, a fully implemented Building and Construction Code, and completion certificates that carry real weight. The third is a digital logbook for every building, holding as-built drawings, materials, energy performance and maintenance history, so the next owner or tenant knows exactly what they are getting.

“Sound insulation, fire safety, accessibility and energy performance should be stated clearly in every sale and lease, with energy ratings shown in adverts. Unfinished and abandoned sites, which damage both streetscapes and public trust, should be tackled firmly. And we need continued investment in skills across the workforce.

“The industry should take the lead here rather than wait for the next incident to force change. A reputation for quality is the best marketing the sector can have, and the most costly thing it can lose.”

A plan for the places Malta creates

Looking towards 2027, we ask which single change would most improve the property market’s contribution to Malta’s economy and quality of life. Xuereb brings the discussion back to the way development decisions are made.

“Moving from a system driven by individual permits to one driven by a plan. That means a binding national spatial strategy and updated local plans that link what we build and where, to the transport, utilities, open space and services needed to support it, with clear rules and predictable timelines.

“The timing is right. We have a new legislature, the planning bills that stalled in the last Parliament have lapsed, and the 2027 Budget is about to be presented. That gives us an opportunity to restart planning reform through proper consultation with industry, professionals, residents and environmental groups.

“Tourism leaders have recently argued that Malta should stop measuring success by the number of beds and visitors. Property faces the same question. We should judge ourselves less by how many units we approve and more by the quality of the places we create.

“A framework like that would do more for affordability than any single subsidy. It would steer growth to areas that can absorb it, prioritise bringing vacant and under-used buildings back into use, support good rental housing near jobs, and give investors the certainty to build to higher standards. It would also help rebuild public trust, which the sector needs as much as it needs land. Our land is limited, but what we make of it doesn’t have to be.”