BPIE: Europe's buildings under the microscope - PU Europe

Ownership and tenure
The ownership of buildings have a bearing on the rate at which renovations are undertaken and the depth of the
energy savings measures that may be included in renovation projects. Arguably, the public sector should be taking
the lead in ‘deep renovations’ and its large portfolio of buildings provides many opportunities for economies of
scale. Private owners may be reluctant to act early and may require encouragement, incentives and regulations to
stimulate reasonable rates and depths of renovation.
Data was sought on the division of ownership in residential and non-residential buildings between the
public and the private sector of the EU27 together with Switzerland and Norway. Analysis of the data
provided on the split between public and private ownership of residential buildings revealed that across
the 23 countries from which data was available the largest share is held in private ownership while 20%
is allocated to ‘pure’ public ownership.
Figure 1B2 shows the country-by-country variations where only Austria reports more than 20% of
residential dwellings held in public ownership. It should be noted that in many countries, social housing
is fully owned by public bodies but there is an increasing trend toward private involvement. This trend is
for instance found in Ireland, England, Austria, France, Denmark and The Netherlands where, in the case
of The Netherlands, the social housing is fully owned by private bodies (housing association) 12 .
Figure 1B2 – Ownership of residential buildings in Europe by number of dwellings
(except France which is in m 2 ).
Source: BPIE survey
South
North & West
Central & East
ES
GR
CY
IT
MT
NO
DK
BE
IE
FR
UK
AT
NL
CH
RO
BG
EE
HU
SI
PL
SK
LV
CZ
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
NOTES
Private
Public
Other
AT: Data until 2001. Mixed ownership is
represented by non-profit building
associations, other companies (e.g.
AG, Bank, GmbH) and other owners
(e.g. associations).
CH: ‘Other’ consists of members of a
building cooperative and others
CY: Data for public and private sector
dwellings constructed between 1998-
2008.
CZ: Based on estimations.
GR: Social housing units are owned by
private bodies
IT: Data until 2001
MT: Other consists of dwellings held by
emphyteusis (notarial contract) and
other used free of charge
NL: ‘Other’ consists of social housing
associations owned by private bodies
for which conditions (e.g. rental
prices) are heavily regulated by the
government.
RO: Based on 2006 estimations
SK: Based on 2001 data
ES: Social housing is mainly delivered
through the private sector and
is controlled through subsidies,
subsidized loans and grants for both
developers and buyers
UK: ‘Other’ consists of Registered
Social Landlords (often referred to
as housing associations) that are
government-funded not-for-profit
organisations that provide affordable
housing.
12
Social Housing in Europe, Christine Whitehead and Kathleen Scanlon, LSE London, London School of Economics and Political Science
Europe’s buildings under the microscope | 39