On Friday, Claude Meisch issued a response to a parliamentary question submitted by Pirate Party MP Marc Goergen, after the latter requested information on the length of the process for social housing to be rented out once a property was vacated by a previous tenant.
Meisch wrote that the average gap between tenants depended on whether any renovation work was required for the property in question following the end of a tenancy. The Housing Fund’s management team usually determines when an apartment is ready once it has been cleaned, renovated and all compliance checks have been carried out. Next, the rental team takes care of linking the property with potential tenants. The process usually takes between 2 and 3 months, according to the minister, as it depends on the tenant’s individual circumstances. The length of time may be extended if the first candidate declines the offer, for example.
Even new rental properties are usually rented out within three months of the building work completion.
The minister added that none of the habitable apartments were currently standing empty; however, 100 out of the 2,000 rental properties owned by the Fund are currently uninhabitable due to ongoing renovations. These works frequently take place following a tenant’s exit, if the property is a repurchase, or if the property was found to be in an uninhabitable condition following a lease.
As for properties put up for sale, Meisch wrote that these take between 6 and 10 months on average until they are fully occupied, to allow time for the process, formalities regarding the purchase, and actual moving procedures. The duration varies depending on the customer’s availability.
