Trouble for property developers

Government to step on the gas with regulation

The cooperatives need more information to build subsidized apartments.(Bild: Tröster Andreas)

The non-profit housing cooperatives are waiting for details of the new housing law. But the information will only come in a separate ordinance. Without this, neither property developers can make serious calculations, nor can people check whether they are eligible for funding.

"A law with headings and no content," is what we hear from the housing cooperatives. The non-profit developers have been waiting for a year and a half for the new law to be presented. This was presented by the state government two weeks ago - the "Krone" reported. But the non-profit property developers are missing important details.

But details were missing: Price models, income limits, technical requirements. Who gets a subsidized apartment? What level of subsidy is paid out? Up to what size of apartment is subsidized?

These details are regulated in the implementing regulations. Stephan Gröger from Heimat Österreich, spokesperson for the cooperatives, is reassuring: "It is normal that the law comes first and the details are only regulated in the implementing ordinance."

Time is pressing
Nevertheless, time is short. And without this information, no property developer can make a serious calculation. The cooperatives are eager to find out how the state intends to reduce construction costs by 10 to 15 percent.

In general, there is a general consensus among the cooperatives behind closed doors: everything that has been presented so far is a skeleton, without flesh.

For cooperative spokesperson Gröger, the anger is understandable, but he tries to calm things down: "I would have liked the details to have been presented more quickly. However, it is now important to us that the law and regulation actually come into force on 1 January 2025."

Eagerly awaiting the content of the ordinance
The state has promised to submit the ordinance for review by the middle/end of October. There will then be a four-week period to submit requests. "It's tight, but it should work out," says Gröger. "The key thing will be what's inside. We have asked for a lot. Let's see what was included and what the lawyers made of it."