Social Housing in Polish Housing System

Alina Muzioł-Węcławowicz, PhD.

Bank of National Economy

National Housing Fund Department

Al. Jerozolimskie 7

00-955 Warsaw, Poland

A paper for the seminar “Social Housing in Europe 2000”, Institute of Sociology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, 6^th - 7^th October 2000.

Abstract:

Financial and legal assumptions, the process of implementation and data on the stock of the contemporary social housing system in Poland are reported in the paper in details. Social housing programme, established in 1995, is recognised as one of the most prosperous element of the housing provision system in Poland. There are several contextual conditions for this, for example:

withdrawn of the state from subsidising other sectors, previously noted as “affordable”,
strong market orientation of the social housing model – “good quality for reasonable price” policy,
limited demand for market, owner-occupied high standard new construction caused by the poor economic condition of the households,
continuous political governmental support for the programme,
interrelations between social housing programme and self-government’s obligations in the field of housing.

Social housing in the current state policy is seen as a mid-term programme facilitating an increase of housing affordability for medium and lower income households during transitional phase of economic reforms. In a longer perspective social housing associations will continue investments and might compete with other institutions as managers of the stock.