Tag: moderate wohnmodelle

Innovative’ housing projects that are economically, environmentally and socially sustainable could help stimulate the economy in Ticino.

The conditions for becoming a landlord are becoming increasingly restrictive, and proportionally fewer families can afford to buy property. In Ticino, it is not only families belonging to the economically weaker segment of the population that have to cope with too many expenses to pay rent and ancillary costs. Inevitably, many families ask the State for financial support. By activating an active policy in favour of moderately rented housing we could create the conditions to reduce the demands on the state.

Private actors in the real estate sector could play an active and decisive role in this direction, as is already the case in other parts of Switzerland, bringing a public benefit while reducing the vacancy rate in the medium term.

By planning the renovation, refurbishment and conversion of existing buildings in a coordinated and careful manner, we could reduce land consumption by improving the housing stock and, at the same time, have a better social impact in respect of the environment.

More attention and a sense of individual responsibility towards the community could lead to savings on the part of the state, which is currently under pressure to find solutions and meet citizens’ needs.

More awareness of the advantages of sharing spaces and services would lead to an increase in quality of life and savings. By optimising expenditure on housing, families could better cope with increases in the cost of living, including healthcare costs.

Among the many possibilities is the development of public utility housing (which can be non-profit corporations, foundations, housing cooperatives) with rents based on actual costs, taking advantage of funding from the
Federal funding and sureties. These projects should mainly focus on renovations of existing buildings, realising quality projects, optimising space so that, if possible, there is less consumption of floor space per inhabitant.

In order for the costs of realising housing projects, as mentioned above, also starting from existing buildings, to be low, it is important that the land cost is not excessive. To be reasonable, the cost of land should be around 20 per cent, or if in central areas 25 per cent, of the total cost. Often in urban areas this is the biggest obstacle.

The housing stock in Ticino is old. Many owners have not invested in renovations, even with low mortgage rates, and when they decide to sell, the economic demands are too high to create income housing with rents affordable to a large segment of the population. It should not be forgotten that the effort rate for housing should not exceed 33% of the income of a family belonging to the upper-middle class of the population. This rate should not exceed 25% if it is in the lower social stratum. Properties for sale, therefore, are often purchased by developers with specific targets who do not always realise projects that correspond to the needs or economic possibilities of families taking into account that wages are low compared to the rest of Switzerland and that the population is ageing faster.

The instrument of surface rights, mainly used for commercial real estate projects, is little used in Ticino for housing projects. Yet it could help to find alternative solutions to develop ‘innovative’ projects. It could be very interesting both for the owner of the land, who would regularly receive a rent (ground lease fee) and at the end of the contract would come back to decide how to use the property, and for the landowner, who would develop his project with his own capital according to his needs without having to find funds to buy the property, which is perhaps located in a well-serviced area. Not needing capital to buy the land, many more families would have the means to invest in housing to live in.

North of the Alps, municipalities or other public authority actors lease out their property by putting bonds on it for private individuals, including Anonymous Societies, to invest capital in specific projects including adequate and affordable housing.

There are also other avenues that could be pursued. The Soliterra Foundation could be of help if it were a project developed by a non-profit housing project developer, in fact, its aim is to promote the construction of affordable housing throughout Switzerland. This is done in particular through the purchase of land and the granting of surface rights to it. The Soliterra Foundation gives financial support to small or young residential housing cooperatives, in particular for the purchase of properties with existing buildings or for approved new construction projects. But what makes the Soliterra Foundation special? The land can be bought back as soon as the financial situation is stable and the loan capital has been sufficiently repaid. The costs for the land right are low because they correspond to the reference interest rate plus a surcharge for administrative costs and a 50% inflation adjustment.
The formula is similar to that of the federal government’s revolving fund, which thanks to loan repayments, which are not a cost to the state because they are remunerated, over time funds are again available to buy more property and thus promote new housing projects of public benefit.

Restructuring the housing stock in Ticino to meet the needs of all generations could bring new opportunities whose benefits would extend to the community. The whole of society would benefit.