The City of Vienna has a long tradition of social housing and urban renewal policies. While at the beginning - facing severe economic and political conditions - primarily municipal rented housing for low-income households was provided, today - due to increasing social diversity - housing policy has to find answers on quite a variety of challenges.

The strengths of public housing in Vienna - compared for instance with private housing or housing systems with subject-related subsidies - are evident:

	Remarkable influence on the overall rent level
	Prevention of homelessness to a large extent
	Extensive social cohesion
	Public influence on planning qualities and innovations
	Important contribution to climate protection
	Strengthening economy and employment
	Contribution to the highest living standards within the EU (according to Mercer Report 2009)

As supported by international studies the Viennese housing subsidy scheme provides a system that is unique in terms of quantity and quality. Therefore it shall be maintained, but at the same time advanced in order to meet new challenges:

	demography: aging of society; limits of affordability of social systems; high share of elder tenants in particular in large housing estates of the 1960ies and 70ies; including services into a socially orientated supply of living space, need for cooperation with other departments of the municipal administration, housing developers and further actors in order to develop and implement new housing models
	population growth: ensuring sufficient (i.e. enforced) new construction and maintaining the affordability of living space, ensuring a sound social and functional mix
	Ecology: contributions of housing construction and renovation to climate protection
	urban renewal: maintenance of socially acceptable "soft urban renewal", focussing on special areas, reinforcing of area renewal offices, for instance through inter-cultural mediators

Therefore research and expert knowledge is needed. Starting with 2011 the Vienna Housing Research Programme will be focussing on the following four priorities:

	Affordable housing: cost reduction through planning, pilot projects on affordable housing construction, economic land use in housing construction, financing and funding options
	Technical and ecological qualities and standards in new housing construction: Energy consumption, flexibility, timber construction, open space, facility standards etc.
	Technical and ecological qualities and standards in refurbishment: Energy consumption, open space, facility standards etc.
	Living in community: tenants participation, new caretaker model, moderation and management, community facilities, assisted living, social mix, integration, identity etc.

International housing research projects do not present a priority like the ones mentioned above, but a cross-sectional area in order to compare our experience and performance with other cities and learn from each other. Although we are convinced that Vienna's housing policy is one of the best, new solutions will be developed in cooperation with several partners.

In this spirit I would like to invite all housing researchers and experts to participate actively in this common task for the future.

Michael Ludwig
Executive City Councillor for Housing and Urban Renewal

Vienna, September 2010

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