When will it become a trend? Rental flats are being built from a derelict school in Újpest

There is hardly a reader who has not noticed this in their own life: in recent years, property prices in Hungary have risen at a rate unrivalled even at European level, and with them, the cost of housing. Among the possible solutions, the construction of rental housing has come into focus in recent months: the new government is planning a comprehensive, social and market-based rental housing programme to alleviate the housing crisis, drawing on EU funds. This strategy is also taking shape in the capital, as evidenced by the Demo Hub project in Újpest:

Twenty-six rental flats are to be created by converting the disused school building at 39–43 Baross Street in District IV.

A pilot housing project is being implemented

As we in our earlier article, the building of the former Leather Processing Technical College has stood empty since 2007, and its condition has deteriorated significantly. The project is being carried out by FORT-BAU Zrt. at a cost of approximately 1.3 billion forints, based on plans by the Nartarchitects architectural practice. Alongside studio flats, there will be two-bedroom flats, and two flats larger than 100 square metres will also be created for large families.

During Monday’s site visit, it emerged that Demo Hub forms part of a pilot housing project known as AHA Budapest (Affordable Housing for All), which is being implemented with European Union funding. Its stated aim is to provide affordable and energy-efficient social housing for those struggling with housing poverty.

According to earlier press reports, if the project is successful, it could serve as a model for the reuse of a number of disused schools owned by the capital.

It will be possible to rent on a means-tested basis

Judit Nagy, head of the Public Procurement and Project Management Department at the Mayor’s Office, said that the project will be funded by 6.2 million euros, 80 per cent of which is EU funding, with the remainder contributed by the Budapest City Council as its own contribution.

The 26 flats built in the Demo Hub development will be available to rent on the basis of social need. The project is due to be completed this year, and residents will be able to move in at the start of next year.

Nowhere else in the EU has there been such significant growth

Mayor Gergely Karácsony also attended the event. He drew attention to the fact that Budapest is facing a very serious housing crisis. „In terms of property prices, there has not been such a significant rise anywhere else in the European Union in recent times as there has been in Budapest,” he said. „This project does not resolve these crisis situations, but it is a potential test case for how we might tackle these challenges and develop a joint, substantive strategy with the various professional organisations,” emphasised the Mayor.