Would our homes be more affordable if they had less parking space?

Europe’s current housing crisis is being felt from the Netherlands to Spain and Germany. In the last years, the steep increase in construction costs has led to a lack of affordable housing. In a time when we must rethink where and how we live, sustainable mobility and parking strategies are key.

The public, cooperative, and social housing sector can play a pivotal role in leading a new housing paradigm that optimises land use and prioritises carbon-neutral mobility options.

On December 4, the SHARE-North Squared, a project funded by the Interreg North Sea programme aiming to introduce shared mobility in housing developments, dedicated a webinar episode to the topic of affordable housing. Housing Europe, a partner in the project co-organised this webinar with the support of Sveriges Allmännytta (Public Housing Sweden).

What is the (no) cost of parking for affordable housing?

Michael Johansson, Researcher on Sustainable Service Studies at Lund University shared recent studies showing the potential that efficient parking policies and sustainable mobility can have in reducing building costs and increasing affordable housing.

Some common myths about parking in housing include the fact that ‘residential parking is not that expensive’ or that ‘affordable housing (in particular) needs more parking’.

However, research from Lund University suggests that parking is actually very expensive, with high financial as well as non-financial costs associated:

• Building surface parking typically costs between €3,000 and €5,000 per space
• Building underground parking ranges from €20,000 to €50,000 per space

Factors like the type of parking, the location (land costs and rents), construction materials used, or the underutilisation of the provided spaces will influence the cost levels.

In housing, complying with minimum parking requirements set by local authorities will lead to increased building costs, inefficient land use, economic inefficiencies, and larger carbon footprint, and negative environmental impact, for providers. In fact, according to Lund University, 1 hectare of parking (441 cars) could represent a missed opportunity to uptake 17.1 tons of CO2 if used for green space instead.

All in all, a move to a new mobility paradigm in public, social,l and cooperative housing that reduces parking and provides other sustainable mobility options (public transport, car-sharing, walking, and cycling infrastructure) could bring a wide range of benefits to providers:

• Reduced construction costs and more affordable housing
• Increased land availability
• Increased and more affordable mobility options for tenants
• Economic efficiency and revenue generation
• Carbon reduction and environmental services
• Improved quality of life for tenants

As Michael said: “it’s unfair to have cities where parking is free for cars and housing is expensive for people.”

The potential for a new mobility paradigm in public housing in Sweden

Björn Berggren, Energy Expert at Sveriges Allmännytta (Public Housing Sweden), introduced how parking construction and mobility are managed in Sweden, and the opportunities and challenges for public housing providers to shift to a more sustainable mobility system presents. 

The Swedish model of public housing is known as a universal system and is accessible to all households regardless of their profile. Financial support from public authorities is targeted at low-income earners as opposed to subsidising the housing companies directly.

Parking, together with rents, is one of the main sources of revenue for public housing companies in Sweden. Currently, providing parking is underpriced and its construction has no return on investment for housing companies, so reducing the cost of parking is one of the strategies often used to cope with the rising construction costs.

A few facts from the sector in Sweden:  

•       The parking norm for new developments around 0.7 per household, significantly above the real needs of tenants.
•       Public housing in Sweden owns around 650,000 car parking spaces.
•       90-70% of cars are parked, and not used.
•       10-20% of costs for new developments are related to parking. 
•       Housing providers in Sweden lose €1 billion/year because of underpriced parking.
•       80% of the carbon footprint of tenants comes from mobility. 

To raise awareness about the real cost of parking, Public Housing Sweden has developed an easy-to-use calculator for housing providers to help them optimise parking provision to achieve greater financial and CO2 savings.

Some recommendations from Public Housing Sweden to shift to a new mobility paradigm in housing include:

•       Negotiating with local authorities to change from parking norms to mobility norms.

•       Charging tenants the actual cost of parking and supporting those who cannot afford it.

•       Unbundle mobility from accommodation charges.

•       Improving the cost transparency of parking for public housing companies.

•       Investing in mobility and parking equally.

•       Integrate mobility hubs in housing developments and provide public transport and shared mobility membership with the accommodation.

If you missed the webinar, you can access the recording and presentations here.

For questions on mobility in housing, reach out to Clara Mafé at clara.mafe@housingeurope.eu