“The waiting list is frighteningly long but we simply do not have enough to offer to people”, Director of the Housing Fund Jacques Vandivinit stated on RTL Radio on Wednesday morning.
However, Vandivinit also said that the work of the Fund cannot solely be judged by the number of housing units it puts on the market every year. Admittedly, he acknowledged, the “raw figures” do not look like much. In 2020, the Housing Fund completed 82 housing units and only 41 in 2019. This is thus by far not enough to satisfy the enormous demand. Currently, over 4,000 households are waiting for a flat or house.
This goes to show how bad people’s “distress” actually is, according to Vandivinit, who added that during first meetings, the Fund often encounters people who are “really miserable”.
Through building, renovating, and relocating, the Fund has provided over 200 people with housing in 2020, according to Vandivinit. However, even though the Housing Fund has enough land to keep building over the next ten to 15 years, it is “not easy” to quickly build new housing space, Vandivinit stated.
According to a recent publication by the Housing Observatory, the Housing Fund is among those who own the most building land in Luxembourg, ranking third overall just behind private company Arendt&Fischbach and the municipality of Luxembourg City. Construction is currently being planned or already underway on 120 hectares of land, Vandivinit explained. In total, he added, the building land reserves account for over 200 hectares. Part of this land, however, is reserved for public spaces.
Vandivinit also pointed out that many plots of land have to be decontaminated first, as the Housing Fund usually does not receive “the most beautiful plots of land”. In fact, the Fund often receives industrial wasteland, such as in Dudelange or Wiltz. “A nice, clean meadow” is rather rare, according to Vandivinit.
Other issues include the labour shortage and delays in the delivery of material. In addition, it is becoming “increasingly difficult” to find construction companies willing to participate in the calls for tender, Vandivinit added.
Vandivinit rejects comparisons between the Housing Fund and the other public property developer, the National Affordable Housing Company (SNHBM), pointing out that they have “very different operating modes”. For instance, Vandivinit explained, the Housing Fund manages over 2,000 flats and only 30 out of 150 staff members work in construction. The Fund has over double the number of employees to look after tenants and ensure the technical maintenance of the buildings. While the Fund is looking for new staff members, Vandivinit acknowledged that “everyone is currently hiring”.
Over the next five years, the Housing Fund aims at putting an average of 150 housing units on the market every year. After that, the Fund plans to go “even further” – provided that the market will allow it, Vandivinit said, pointing out that the Fund does not build housing themselves but in cooperation with private developers. Flagship projects such as ‘Neischmelz’ in Dudelange or ‘Wunne mat der Wooltz’ in Wiltz are expected to create over 4,600 additional dwellings in the medium and long term, Vandivinit stated.
In Wiltz, the first dwellings are expected to be finished in two years “at the latest”.
First results from the new ‘Cité Syrdall’ in Wecker with its 160 dwellings should be available within the next couple of years, Vandivinit explained. ‘Neischmelz’ is currently planned for 2035.
