Prague city councilors have recently approved new rules for allocating municipal social housing, with the support of the Pirate Party. On Monday, the city council endorsed a proposal by Alexandra Udženija (ODS) that introduced changes to the allocation process of city rental apartments.
The rule changes pertain to the allocation of housing for people in housing need and include new categories of recipients, such as young families. The points system, which had previously been criticized, remains in place. However, the allocation of apartments will now be overseen by the Prague Center for Social Services (CSSP), a municipal contributory organization with more expertise and experience in the field of social housing.
The municipality plans to rent out 3,537 apartments to individuals in housing need between 2022 and 2030. Under the previous rules, only four groups – seniors, people with disabilities, people in social distress, and select professions like firefighters – were eligible to apply for social housing.
In addition, a protest camp was recently set up in front of the city hall in Prague, where members of the Platform for Social Housing erected 50 tents. They aimed to draw attention to the number of families who lost the opportunity to secure municipal housing this year. They claimed that, on average, only ten vulnerable households were accommodated in social housing each month over the past four years.
In connection with the housing issue, the question of real estate investment has also arisen. Jan Večerka, founder of BrikkApp, stated that investing in real estate is not limited to wealthy individuals but is accessible to anyone with a modest financial investment. BrikkApp acts as an aggregator of real estate investment opportunities in Europe, enabling people to invest even a few hundred korunas in specific projects and achieve returns on their investments.
Večerka mentioned that there are approximately 150 different websites in Europe offering real estate investments, but his company seeks to bring together investment options from various platforms and countries in one place. Investors can choose which project to invest in and subsequently receive agreed-upon returns according to a predetermined method of appreciation.
To minimize the risks associated with real estate investment, Večerka highlighted an internal risk model created by the Association of Real Estate Investment Platforms, which allows for the assessment of investment success.
In summary, Prague has undergone a change in the allocation of social housing, which, despite controversy, was approved by the city council. This change aims to bring greater transparency and efficiency to the allocation process. At the same time, there is an opportunity for individuals with a smaller financial investment to invest in real estate, providing smaller investors with a chance to capitalize on their money in this promising investment sector.
Sources: seznamzpravy.cz and newstream.cz
