Czech city rents out historic buildings to tackle housing crisis

Brno allows residents to renovate old apartments in pilot scheme

The city of Brno is among the urban centres where renters face high living costs in Europe. Alamy

The Czech city of Brno is tackling a housing crisis by renting out historic buildings in the city centre and allowing tenants to renovate them.

The millennium-old city, a former capital of Moravia and home to a medieval castle and cathedral, hopes to reduce pressure on the housing market and save money on upkeep that will be partly paid for by residents.

It comes as soaring housing costs across Europe leave many people, especially young renters, priced out of city centres.

A report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development found last year that Czech cities suffered from a chronic housing shortage, with Brno the second most expensive city for renters after Prague.

Jan Mandat, a district council member in Brno, said the project was in a pilot phase with 10 apartments available but would be expanded if there was a demand for it.

“If there is enough interest from the citizens, we will allow the whole project to continue during 2022 and the following years,” he was quoted as saying by cities network Eurocities.

Tenants can have the interior of historic buildings repainted, bathrooms refitted and floors remodelled, but it must be done to professional standards. Some of the repair costs will be deducted from their rent.

At least some of the apartments are in the heart of the city’s pedestrian zone. Some of the buildings were put up in the early 20th century or after the Second World War, while others are older.

“This opens up the possibility of nice living for those who are not wealthy enough to be able to buy their own housing,” said the mayor of Brno’s central district, Vojtech Mencl, when the project was launched last month.

“I assume that such tenants will live in our apartments for a long time, so they will also be interested in taking care of the house together with others and keeping it in order.”

Last year’s OECD report put Brno on a similar level to Hamburg, Vienna and Berlin for rental prices — not particularly expensive by European standards but high compared with other Czech cities.

House prices in the country have risen by almost half since 2013, almost twice as fast as the OECD average, analysts found.

Paris, London, Oslo and Dublin were ranked among the continent’s most expensive rental markets. In the UK, rising inflation has led to fears that fewer people will be able to afford to buy homes.