The Czech Supreme Audit Office (NKÚ) has recently cast a critical eye on the state’s housing initiatives, highlighting significant shortcomings in the Ministry for Local Development (MMR) and the State Fund for Investment Support (SFPI) between 2016 and 2021. The audit revealed that the billions allocated during this period had only a marginal impact on the housing market, attributing the ineffectiveness to the previous government led by the ANO movement.

Over the mentioned timeframe, the state supported more than 4500 entities with 13.8 billion Czech korunas through the SFPI, specifically within the Construction for Municipalities program. This program aimed to enhance housing for at least 2375 households, with a focus on constructing social apartments. However, by the close of 2022, a mere 226 of these targeted apartments were completed.

The NKÚ’s report stated that the construction of supported apartments plays a negligible role in the overall volume of completed apartments and the number of inhabited units, asserting that it cannot significantly influence the broader housing market.

Current Minister for Local Development, Ivan Bartoš, expressed disappointment, terming the situation an “unflattering testimony of the ANO movement.” He argued that the ANO movement had abandoned the law on social housing and replaced it with poorly designed programs.

The NKÚ also scrutinized the Rental Apartments program, designed to support disadvantaged groups. However, due to program conditions prioritizing fund returns over safeguarding individuals from the target group, the rental costs surged from the original 135 korunas per square meter to a staggering 569 korunas per meter.

This predicament, as highlighted by the NKÚ, exerts pressure on the state to incur additional costs, such as housing allowances. The audit underscored the prolonged absence of a systematic solution to housing policy, with a proposed law expected to take effect only from mid-2025. The MMR, in response, claimed to have terminated ineffective programs and introduced a new initiative, aiming to construct the majority of the 474 newly designed apartments by 2025. The landscape of Czech housing policy remains under scrutiny as the government endeavors to address these significant challenges.

Article by Prague Forum