MOBA: Rethinking needs and financing for affordable rent and cooperative housing in Central and South-Eastern Europe

The document titled "Rethinking needs and financing for affordable rental and cooperative housing in Central and South-Eastern Europe" was published in January 2024 in the Radical Housing Journal. This journal focuses on innovative housing solutions and aims to address the challenges faced by various communities regarding housing. The conversation features insights from Zsuzsanna Pósfai and Csaba Jelinek from the Periféria Policy and Research Center, MOBA Housing SCE, and Mara Ferreri from the Polytechnic University of Turin. Their collaborative research sheds light on the pressing housing issues in the Central and South-Eastern European (CSEE) region.

The CSEE region is characterized by a dominant 'super' homeownership model, where over 90% of the housing stock is owner-occupied. This model restricts flexibility and does not cater to many households, especially those who cannot afford to purchase homes. Such a scenario has created a significant gap between housing needs and availability, necessitating a reassessment of current housing policies and models.

Surveys conducted in four capital cities—Budapest, Belgrade, Ljubljana, and Zagreb—indicate that more than half of the population seeks changes in their housing situation. Notably, between 13% and 26% of respondents expressed a willingness to consider affordable rental and cooperative housing options. This highlights a growing demand for diverse housing models that can provide more accessible living solutions for residents in these urban areas.

The current housing finance landscape is inadequate for supporting alternative housing models. Existing financial products predominantly focus on individual mortgages, which are often inaccessible to many social groups. The research emphasizes the urgent need for new financial instruments tailored specifically for nonprofit affordable housing providers to facilitate the development of sustainable housing solutions.

MOBA Housing SCE is addressing these challenges by establishing a bottom-up quasi-revolving fund aimed at supporting local housing projects in their initial phases. This fund will serve as catalytic capital, helping bridge the financing gap until traditional lenders can offer more appropriate financial products. MOBA’s approach emphasizes the importance of international collaboration and adapts state socialist traditions of cooperativism to contemporary needs, promoting collective ownership models that prioritize affordability and resist speculation.

Key challenges identified in the research include limited access to adequate financing, insufficient regulatory frameworks, and restricted organizational capacities. MOBA advocates for the legal recognition of nonprofit affordable housing providers to enable public support and foster a more resilient housing sector.

Looking ahead, MOBA is developing the "MOBA Accelerator," a transnational revolving fund designed to provide bridge loans for project development. This initiative aims to attract international solidarity and resources from larger cooperative networks, further supporting the growth of affordable housing solutions across the region.

In summary, the research underscores the need for diversifying housing tenure forms beyond individual homeownership by incorporating rental and cooperative models. The findings call for innovative financial solutions and international cooperation to tackle systemic challenges within the CSEE housing markets.