housing developments in european countries - Department of ...

Section 2
Context
Context Section 2
Table
2.7.1
Characteristics of the Housing Stock in Denmark, 1990-2003
2.7.3 Economy
2.8 Estonia
Category 1990 1995 2000 2003
Dwellings by tenure (%) Owner-occupied 51.7 50.4 51.4 50.6
Rental dwellings total 42.2 44.3 44.8 45.0
Of which are: – private 18.4 18.7 18.0 17.8
– Non-profit housing 16.8 18.3 19.1 19.2
– Co-operative dwellings 4.5 5.1 6.3 6.6
– Government housing 2.6 2.2 1.4 1.4
– Not occupied 6.1 5.3 3.8 4.4
Dwellings by standard and
availability of utilities (No.) Dwellings of satisfactory standard 2,027,000 2,170,000 2,291,000 2,370,000
– of which were built before 1950 763,000 822,000 870,000 895,000
Dwellings without bathing facilities,
a lavatory and heating 326,000 256,000 198,000 171,000
– of which were built before 1950 288,000 250,000 173,000 141,000
Dwelling with no bath 271,000 218,000 169,000 145,000
Dwelling with no heating 128,000 86,000 46,000 36,000
Dwelling with no lavatory 85,000 70,000 55,000 48,000
Total dwellings (No.) 2,353,000 2,427,000 2,489,000 2,541,000
The standard of the Danish housing stock compares
very well with the other countries examined in this
review. Table 2.7.1 reveals that in 2003, 93.3% of all
dwellings were of satisfactory standard. Only 6.7% of
dwellings lacked basic amenities (i.e. a bath, toilet and
Accurate data on levels of vacant dwellings in all
tenures are not available. However, vacancy levels in
the rented housing stock are estimated to be
considerably less than the level of 4.4% reported in
TABLE 2.7.1.
heating) and 1.4% lacked
heating (i.e. district or Table
central heating or
2.7.2 Economic Trends in Denmark, 2002-2005
electrical heating in the Category 2002 2003 2004 2005
case of single-family
houses). Danish dwellings
(projected) (projected)
% change (1995 prices)
are also generously sized,
especially in comparison
with many Central and
Eastern European
countries. In 2003 the
average floor space of a
dwelling in Denmark was
GDP
Private consumption
Government consumption
Residential construction
Exports of goods and services
Imports of goods and services
Percentage change in total employment
2.1
1.9
2.1
6.6
5.8
4.2
-0.4
0.4
1.2
0.1
8.5
-0.4
0.6
-1.3
2.1
3.0
0.7
2.5
3.9
3.8
0.3
2.3
2.5
0.5
-0.5
4.6
4.1
0.7
109.3 m 2 Percentage unemployment rate
and in 2002,
(using the EU definition) 4.5 5.5 5.6 5.1
the average number of
rooms per dwelling was
3.69.
Consumer price index 2.4 2.1 1.8 1.7
Economic growth rates in Denmark are currently
modest. GDP (measured at constant 1995 prices)
increased by 0.4% in 2003, but is expected to rise by
over 2% in 2004 and 2005 due to an active fiscal
policy, low interest rates, international recovery and
domestic consumption.
At the same time unemployment and inflation in the
country remain at low levels. The unemployment rate
was 5.5% in 2003, while inflation (as measured by the
consumer price index) has fallen from 2.4% in 2002 to
2.1% in 2003, and is projected to fall further by 2005.
2.7.4 Demography
Table
2.7.3
The population of Denmark was 5,368,354 persons in
2002 – an increase of 38,334 persons since 2000.
TABLE 2.7.3 reveals that this increase is related to both
natural increase and positive net migration, although
of the two the former is the more significant factor.
There were 2,466,693 households in Denmark in
2003, and average household size was 2.2 persons per
household, which is one of the lowest among the
various countries included in this review.
Demographic Trends in Denmark, 2000-2002
Population Net migration Total
at Live net
1 January births Deaths Immigration Emigration increase
Year No. No. No. No. No. No.
2000 5,330,020 67,081 57,986 52,915 43,417 18,593
2001 5,349,212 65,450 58,338 55,984 43,980 19,116
2002 5,368,354 64,149 58,610 52,778 43,481 14,836
2.8.1 Policy Making and
Implementation
The key objectives of housing policy in Estonia are set
out in the Estonian housing development plan for the
years 2003-2008, which in turn takes account of the
Estonian Housing Development Plan Until 2010
which was produced by a commission of housing
experts established by the Estonian government in
1998.
According to these documents the general purpose of
State activity in the housing sector is to provide all
Estonia’s residents with an option to choose their place
of dwelling. The main task is to create conditions in
the housing market (legal regulation, institutional
regulation and support measures) that would allow
owners, tenants and citizen-initiated housing
organisations to solve their problems independently
and to carry out individual housing strategies. The
State’s housing development activities are based on the
principles of balanced social and regional development.
On the basis of these key objectives, the present
development plan sets forth specific goals for the
central government’s housing activities
between 2003 and 2008. These include:
■
■
■
ensuring the preservation of
existing housing stock;
improving the flexibility of
regional housing markets;
improving housing-related
finance opportunities;
■ prolonging the life span of existing housing stock,
especially preventing large apartment buildings
from becoming uninhabitable due to insufficient
maintenance and repairs, and
■ addressing the problems of tenants living in
dwellings which have been returned to their original
owners by the State.
32 European Union Report
Regular National Report on Housing Developments in European Countries
33