“Houses need people”, says the song. But in Aurland and several other district municipalities, one in three houses is empty, because the owner lives elsewhere. There are neither houses nor leisure properties for sale in scenic Aurland, in the middle of the Sognefjord. The municipality is now considering introducing a building obligation as one of several measures to prevent the few properties that exist being bought up by holidaymakers or used for short-term rentals. The building obligation means that someone must build on the property. The goal is for the housing to go to those who live permanently in the area, and not to leisure housing. – When you are a small municipality like Aurland, every single person is quite important. Then we have to ensure that the housing estates are used for what is intended, says deputy mayor David Underdal (Sp). Namely, it is difficult for permanent residents and those moving in to get hold of homes in the tiny Westland municipality. And when a house comes up for sale, the shop round can get heated. Two years ago, a 100-year-old house without running water was sold for 362 percent above the asking price. There was a bidding war when two small, old houses in Vesle Undredal in Aurland came up for sale in the summer of 2021. The most expensive went 362 percent above the asking price. Photo: Arne Stubhaug / news But forcing people to live in their houses is not necessarily the whole solution to the housing shortage, says director Marit Mellingen at the District Centre. – It will take more than building obligation If Aurland says yes to building obligation, they will be one of the very few municipalities in the country. In 2008, 70 municipalities in Norway had a building obligation. Today, the number is 41 out of a total of 356 municipalities. One of the municipalities that has moved away from the tax obligation is the southern municipality of Risør, after an intense political battle earlier this year. Arendal, on the other hand, recently decided to re-introduce the building obligation. It is nevertheless easy to understand that the municipalities are considering the building obligation since it is a move the municipalities can manage themselves, says Mellingen. But it takes more than coercion to get a good housing market. – We know that it will take more than just compulsory purchase to bring about the variety and dynamism in the market which is often necessary. She believes that the municipalities can help take a greater share of the risk when developing housing estates. For example, the municipality can introduce a buy-back scheme to reduce the risk for those who build new buildings. It can be difficult to sell a home for the price it would cost to put up a new building in a district municipality. In addition, the municipality can enter into concrete collaborations with developers to realize various types of projects. Director Marit Mellingen at the District Center believes that more is needed than compulsory building to get the variety and dynamism in the housing market that is urgently needed. Photo: Geir Bjarte Hjetland / news The Demographic Committee has previously proposed tax exemptions to make it easier to rent out in the districts. Important for the business sector Getting hold of more and more varied dwellings is, in any case, absolutely central to the villages in order for the business sector to get hold of enough people, Mellingen believes. A report from the competence center for rural development together with the Ministry of Local Government and Modernization has looked at what housing access has to do with the recruitment of labor in the rural areas. When asked what are the important reasons for the recruitment challenges, one quarter answered that lack of access to their own homes is an important reason. It is difficult for many municipalities to live up to Ola Bremnes’ iconic lyrics when the houses in the villages are left standing as holiday homes. Photo: Majlis Andersen / Flicker.com – A slightly unusual arrangement In another idyllic Westland municipality, they have taken measures other than mandatory housing to keep the cottagers away. In the island municipality of Austevoll, it is especially on the smaller islands that residential buildings are used as holiday homes. Here, the municipality has built houses that new residents can rent. Then the host Austevollings avoid buying a home before they have decided whether they actually want to live there. Elsewhere in the municipality, arrangements have been made for people to live in buildings other than terraced houses with lawns, such as multi-family houses and flats. – Buplikt is a rather special arrangement, says senior mayor Morten Storebø in Austevoll. In Aurland, the buplikt scheme is now under consultation. The deputy mayor hopes that they will find a solution to the housing shortage. – It is critical. There are many people who are looking for a place to live and struggle to find a place to live.
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Dispute over housing obligation is the right solution to the housing shortage – news Vestland
