How to improve access to housing for the low-income population?

Este artículo está también disponible en / This post is also available in: Spanish

Among the challenges facing the sustainable development of our region, the issue of housing is, without any doubt, one of the most important, urgent, and complex. Housing is essential in our lives: can you really think about access to education or health when you have nowhere to live?

In today’s blog we go to Brazil, a country with a deficit of 5.8 million homes and more than 24 million in qualitative deficit. Brazil illustrates the complexity and urgency of solving the housing gap in our region, giving special attention to the most vulnerable segment of the population: low-income families.

IDB’s commitment with social housing in Brazil

The issue of social housing (aimed at the neediest segments of the population) is one of the most important issues on the joint work agenda between the Inter-American Development Bank and the Government of Brazil.

At the IDB, we have supported emblematic initiatives on this issue for decades in Brazil. Among them, we highlight the IDB Habitar Brasil Program, which, in addition to facilitating the construction of decent housing for tens of thousands of families, it inspired urbanization programs throughout the country. Likewise, the IDB’s commitment to housing in Brazil is present at the local level, and it can be found many other subnational programs aimed at solving the housing deficit.

In addition to these programs, we must also take into account the technical support and public policy recommendations we share with the National Housing Secretariat (SNH), with whom we work very closely. As a result of this close collaboration, the IDB has recently published a series of studies that are aimed to serve as a guide to improve access to affordable housing in Brazil.

A New series of IDB publications to strengthen public housing policies in Brazil

Under the title “Social Interest Housing”, the IDB has just published a series of seven technical notes that bring together practical knowledge and reflections that will be particularly useful for decision-making in the area of ​​social housing. This work is the result of an exhaustive analysis as a result of the collaboration with the SNH. This series aims to become a repository of recommendations and ideas to implement in the coming years.

These are some of the main recommendations:

• Diversifying the instruments of housing policy
• Promoting a greater participation of the private sector in the financing and care of low-income families
• Modernizing financial tools
• Incorporating advances in digitization, gender equity and the role of sustainability in decision-making.

These aspects are aligned with the IDB’s Vision 2025, our strategy to return sustainable growth to our region.

Please, find below a video (available in Portuguese) containing the official presentation of the publications:

Lessons learned from the Social Housing series in Brazil

In this section we summarize the main lessons learned from each of the 7 technical notes that are part of this series. We also provide the direct access link for a free download (in Portuguese) from our library.

1. How to build new opportunities:

In the first section of the collection, we offer an overview of the social housing sector in Brazil, based on analysis and studies carried out during 2020. This volume addresses the housing deficit and demand, the actors and institutions involved, the legal framework and financing conditions of the sector. In addition, we include good practices, both national and international. These practices encourage access to quality housing through programs, financing and other systems, paying special attention to improving housing and social rent. (https://publications.iadb.org/publications/portuguese/document/Habitacao-de-interesse-social-no-Brasil-construindo-novas-oportunidades-panorama-2020-e-foco-em-desafios-prioritarios.pdf)

2. Recommendations on the system of registration of demand and selection of beneficiaries:

The second volume of the series analyzes the processes and information systems that currently exist for the registration and selection of beneficiaries of social housing programs. On this basis, we present the proposal for structuring a single demand and supply registration system, covering topics such as its architecture, procedures and implementation. (https://publications.iadb.org/pt/habitacao-de-interesse-social-no-brasil-propostas-sobre-sistema-de-registro-da-demanda-e-selecao-de)

3. Recommendations to improve the housing financing system:

This note focuses on the issue of financing. Attention is given to how to help the low- and moderate-income segments, which are who face greater difficulties in accessing credit. The general objective is to contribute to the development of a robust, dynamic, and sustainable credit market in Brazil. (https://publications.iadb.org/pt/habitacao-de-interesse-social-no-brasil-propostas-para-melhorias-ao-sistema-de-financiamento)

4. Recommendations on housing improvements:

Volume 4 of the series brings together programmatic responses to promote improvements in inadequate housing in Brazil, focusing on low-income families. This study provides an overview of the initiatives implemented in Brazil and other countries in the region. (https://publications.iadb.org/pt/habitacao-de-interesse-social-no-brasil-propostas-sobre-melhorias-habitacionais)

5. Recommendations on social leasing:

Leasing is an alternative form of access to housing in contrast to traditional models, such as acquisition or self-construction. This publication promotes an initial debate on the issue of social rent, understood as a housing policy (as opposed to emergency or transitory policies) aimed at low-income families, and presents proposals for the creation of a National Social Leasing Program in support of municipal initiatives. (https://publications.iadb.org/publications/portuguese/document/Habitacao-de-interesse-social-no-Brasil-propostas-sobre-locacao-social.pdf)

6. Recommendations on a national benchmark for real estate prices:

This publication addresses the prospect of creating a national benchmark for real estate price indices that allows adequate monitoring of the behavior of real estate prices in Brazil. (https://publications.iadb.org/pt/habitacao-de-interesse-social-no-brasil-propostas-sobre-referencial-nacional-de-precos-de-imoveis)

7. Recommendations for social and environmental sustainability:

The last volume of this series is an instrument to support the assurance of better performance, efficiency and environmental sustainability in the production of social housing in Brazil. (https://publications.iadb.org/publications/portuguese/document/Habitacao-de-interesse-social-no-Brasil-propostas-para-a-sustentabilidade-socioambiental.pdf)

We hope this series of publication will mean an step further to be closer to fulfilling our mission (improving lives in Latin America and the Caribbean), as well as strengthening the public policies of housing in Brazil, a complex problem that requires collective efforts to solve it.

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