Year 6, Vol.1: Assisted Rents

It is certainly not news to anyone that there are a large number of families living in poverty housing in Argentina. Neither would it come as a surprise to hear the statistics of people living below the poverty line... However, it may surprise you to know that in our city of Buenos Aires there are thousands of families living in squalid conditions in transitory cheap hotels, paying rates comparable to normal rents, whilst a considerable number of buildings remain empty. There are some 18,000 people in these conditions.... many of whose only obstacle to decent living conditions are legal requirements or discrimination of a marginalized population.

Having analysed this situation, Habitat for Humanity Argentina (HPHA) is offering a special service to these families, called “Assisted Rents”. This will provide an immediate solution for families with sufficient income to rent, but who today are limited to squalid hotels, boarding houses and other inadaquate accommodations.

The Assisted Rents project, which will mostly be taking place in the southern part of the City of Buenos Aires, seeks to act as a bridge between the property owners and the huge demand by the families living in unacceptable conditions with no possibility of improving their situation and for whom not having a formal guarantee to be eligible for a rent is an obstacle. Its aims are not transitory populations but families who wish to settle in the city. Assisted Rents will consist in creating a connection between home owners and future tenants. HPHA’s will assume the role of tutor and guarantee of the contract and will provde education and follow up with the family.

Even though this is not a final solution, HPHA tries to soothe the exclusion of families who are marginalized because of their origin or current living place, while at the same time providing trust by keeping track of the fulfilment of the contract. Therefore, Assisted Rents would be the immediate habitat solution that will tend to raise the living conditions of those who, because of different reasons, do not have access to a proper house and don’t have a choice other than to live in precarious and overcrowding conditions. Its impact remains in the fact that it allows to overcome the current situation using resources that are already available in society, immediately granting the access to a safe and healthy place to live in to the destinatary families of the programme.

The proposal aims to help those families who are excluded from the rent and property market: it is a project of temporary tutoring aimed at helping the family on its path towards a sustainable housing solution. As in all its programmes, HPHA will offer a “More than Rentals” programme, which includes training and educational workshops that will try to advise and guide families in thinking ahead, beyond their years of renting.

HPHA hopes to encourage owners of properties in the southern part of town to join this project. Its goal is to add new appartments to the already insufficient market. In order to do this, HPHA will try to convince owners who are afraid or unable to offer their unused properties for rent. The owners will receive the assurance of a carefully selected tenant whose interest in continuing along the “More than Rents” programme will encourage adequate care of the property. Where properties are not up to standard due to lack of use, HPHA foresees special projects to negotiate renovation as part of the rent agreement..

If you have an unused property or one you would like to offer in rent through this project, please contact us to: alquileres@hpha.org.ar