More than 2,000,000,000 euros will be allocated for housing construction in Poland in 2026 0 8

The Polish government intends to expand its housing program. This year's budget allocates 6 billion 700 million zlotys (1.57 billion euros) for this purpose. Speaker of the Sejm Włodzimierz Czarzasty clarified:

"This is a program proposed to the government by the left forces. This year, the construction of 18,000 apartments is already planned, and they are actually being built. This is just the beginning, as we plan to expand this program further this year."

Specifically, funds from the National Recovery Plan will be added. In total, this will amount to nearly 9 billion zlotys (2.1 billion euros).

The main goal of the Polish government's housing strategy should be to assist people who find themselves in the so-called "rental trap": they earn too much to qualify for social housing but too little to afford rent or purchase an apartment on the open market. This situation affects more than 4 million people.

The housing issue in Poland is pressing regardless of who is in power. Each new government tries to address it with varying degrees of success.

For instance, the flagship project of the Law and Justice party (PiS) government was the "Safe 2% Loan" program, which launched in July 2023 after the failure of the PiS "Housing+" program.

After the formation of a new coalition government led by Donald Tusk, the end of the "Safe 2% Loan" program was announced.

In a broadcast on Polish Radio, Bartosz Turek, a real estate expert, commented on the new preferential loan program.

• If we look at the declared goal of the "Housing for Start" program, it is a good goal. It aims to support individuals who cannot afford a standard loan, as they are considered uncreditworthy by banks. And thanks to the provision of a cheaper loan, they will be able to realize their dream of having their own housing. Therefore, the idea itself is undoubtedly correct. If the "Housing for Start" program will implement it, that would be wonderful. However, there will still be consultations, changes to the program, and work in parliament. Accordingly, the program may undergo many changes.

The expert emphasizes that several provisions of the "Housing for Start" program need to be reviewed.

• The thing is, if we delve into the provisions of the program, which I hope will be modified, we will see that the income requirements are very high. For example, a single person, that is, a person without a family, can expect a preferential loan if they earn no less than 10,000 zlotys (about 2,230 euros) before taxes. This is a large sum in Polish realities. After all, the average salary in enterprises is 7,000 zlotys (1,600 euros), and as is known, most Poles earn less than the average salary in enterprises. Even more shocking are the conditions for a family of three, that is, a married couple with a child. Here, the requirement is an income of 23,000 zlotys (5,300 euros), which after taxes amounts to about 16,000 zlotys (3,700 euros). Even now, with a standard loan, earnings at this level allow for a loan of up to 1 million zlotys (230,000 euros), and in the case of certain banks, the loan amount would exceed 1 million zlotys.