Validating policies and business models for affordable and sustainable housing (Built4People Partnership)

Expected Outcome:

Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:

• Better understanding of the factors and interdependencies that influence levels of renovation of rental properties in the affordable housing sector;
• Increased number of policy makers revise policies, regulations, instruments and business models to increase the rate of renovation of rental properties in the affordable housing sector.

Scope:

The Renovation Wave strategy sets out measures across the whole renovation chain that aim to increase the rate and depth of renovations. One of the key principles for housing renovation towards 2030 and 2050 is affordability, i.e. making energy efficient, comfortable, healthy, sustainable and climate-resilient buildings widely available, in particular for medium and lower-income households and vulnerable people and areas. A better understanding of the impact of current policy frameworks on the affordable housing sector and on energy poverty is needed.

Proposals are expected to address all of the following:

• Research the effectiveness and implications of existing policies at different levels of governance (from local to European), regulations, support instruments and business models on the renovation and provision of rental properties in the affordable housing sector.
• Validate a methodology for comparing the affordability of different types of rented properties located in different local housing markets, with different climate conditions, and for different demographic groups, including those in a vulnerable situation;
• Design and validate new or improved solutions (policies, regulations, support instruments and/or business models) that improve affordability while still meeting decarbonisation targets for the housing sector. Quantify the effects of those solutions on the cost of a ‘deep renovation’ of rental properties in the affordable housing sector, considering the scale of the renovation (e.g. small multi-apartment buildings, large multi-apartment buildings; groups of buildings) and the type of governance and ownership models.

This topic implements the co-programmed European Partnership on ‘People-centric sustainable built environment’ (Built4People). As such, projects resulting from this topic will be expected to contribute to the objectives of Built4People, transfer knowledge to its network of innovation clusters^[1] and report on results in support of the monitoring of the Built4People KPIs.

Projects resulting from this topic are encouraged to share information, best practice, and results with the 'New European Bauhaus hub for results and impact'.

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[1] https://built4people.eu/nebula_project/