The purchase of the apartment is only possible after 25 years. Another twist in a sensitive matter.

• There are many indications that the final content of the regulations regarding the purchase of social housing built for cheap rental will be known at the next session of the Sejm (22-25 July this year).
• The first version of the draft amendment to the Act on Social Forms of Housing Development assumed that tenants would be able to purchase such apartments only after 25 years from the date of their commissioning.
• On July 9, after a heated debate, the Sejm adopted the amendment with an amendment providing for the possibility of redemption after 15 years.
• However, on Wednesday, July 16, Senate committees recommended deleting this amendment. The bill will now go to the Senate plenary session.
• If the latter upholds the version adopted by the Senate committees, the final shape of these provisions will be decided by the Sejm.

The fate of the future rules for the purchase of apartments created under social housing rental (SBC) programmes - in the form of social housing associations (TBS) and social housing initiatives (SIM) - is still being decided.

In both of these forms, cheap rental premises were and are being built thanks to significant funding from public funds.

The first version of the government draft amendment to the Act on Social Forms of Housing Development assumed that tenants would be able to purchase such apartments only after 25 years from the date of their commissioning .

Let us recall that on July 9 this year, the Sejm unexpectedly and after a heated debate adopted, among others, an amendment by PiS and Poland 2050 MPs, according to which apartments built under the SBC program could be purchased after just 15 years .

Such privatization, however, would be possible in cities with populations up to 100,000 . The authors of the amendment argued that its implementation—meaning faster access to ownership for tenants of social housing—would help stem the depopulation of smaller towns, cities, and rural areas.

The goal of housing policy should be to retain young people. A good way to encourage them to stay is to have a stable home in their hometown.

- argued this amendment by the Minister of Funds and Regional Policy, Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz from Poland 2050.

However, on Wednesday, July 16, the matter took another turn. The joint Senate committees on local government, budget and public finance, and infrastructure recommended adopting amendments to the amendment to the law on social housing.

The amendments proposed by the committees restore the wording of the act in the form submitted by the government, which means deleting the amendments adopted by the Sejm at the request of the Poland 2050 MPs, including the possibility of purchasing apartments after 15 years .

The bill will now proceed to the Senate's plenary session. If the Senate adopts a resolution upholding the amendments proposed by the Senate committees, the bill will return to the Sejm. In such a case, the final wording of the bill (which will then be signed by the president) will be decided by members of parliament during the Sejm session on July 22-25.

We can then expect another heated debate on the statutory rules for the purchase of apartments built for rent under TBS and SIM schemes.

A lively discussion also preceded Wednesday's (July 16) Senate committee vote, when an amendment reinstating the 25-year buyout period for social housing was adopted . The process for acquiring ownership of such units continues to divide politicians.

Senator Zygmunt Frankiewicz, who was the mayor of Gliwice from 1993 to 2019, noted during Wednesday's session of the Senate committees that the main housing problem in Poland still concerns the lack of affordable rental apartments.

In my opinion, the role of the state, which subsidizes this (social - ed.) housing, is to provide housing, especially for young people. However, it is not the state's role to provide citizens with property , and that is the effect the amendment adopted by the Sejm on July 9th aims to achieve. Therefore, I oppose it.

- emphasized Senator Frankiewicz.

Deputy Speaker of the Senate Maciej Żywno from Poland 2050 argued against this opinion.

"I met with representatives of Podlasie's social housing initiatives (SHIs). All of them declared that they joined the SHIs primarily because they hoped to have an additional tool to keep residents, especially young ones, in their local communities . And this is a region that is experiencing a terrible depopulation," noted Senator Żywno.

He added: "Hence our argument for faster acquisition of ownership, especially in smaller towns. I urge you to take this into account. Much still depends on SIM's decision – whether it will proceed with a sale or not. This door should be left open, not closed," said Maciej Żywno.

"People who live in a rental property for 15 years invest in it, take care of it, and also repay the mortgage . Therefore, the incentive of being able to own it after 15 years is a truly significant advantage," concluded the Poland 2050 politician.

Senator Anna Górska from the New Left has a different opinion: - It seems to me that the problem of small towns and poviats is not that you cannot obtain the ownership of a TBS, SIM or municipal apartment, but that these apartments simply do not exist there - she said.

"Local governments that have joined the SIMs (operating as partnerships - ed.) are currently facing a major problem. They contributed money to the creation of the SIMs, but they lack the resources to ensure these investments develop to a level that will provide the number of apartments desired by the local community," explained Anna Górska.

People emigrate to larger cities in search of work and housing. However, the reason isn't that it's impossible to own property in a small town , because they just won't be able to own property in Gdańsk or Białystok, as they won't be listed first on any lists there if they've just moved.

- added the New Left senator.

In the opinion of Senator Górska, "the guarantee of balanced regional development is the provision of public services in smaller towns, and such a service is access to housing in a municipal or participatory system, such as TBS or SIM.

- It is equally important to ensure the development of a network of transport connections between small towns and large cities , and not to try to bribe people to move to small towns because they will get an apartment from SIM or TBS, which they will buy in 15 years at the market price or lower, because of a discount - concluded Anna Górska.