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cooperative association is responsible for building housing developments, which are
then sold to “daughter” (also known as “subsidiary” or “primary”) cooperatives.
Financial risk for members is limited to their daughter cooperative. 102
53. The collective structure also promotes affordability and security of tenure by
enabling group loans or savings or, in some cases, assistance funds for temporary
defaults by members. The collective organization and management of common areas
and housing maintenance is also crucial to promoting affordability for low-income
households. 103 In the Scandinavian model, homeowners will typically fund 75-80
per cent of the cost of a housing development, while the rest is covered by a loan
taken by the daughter cooperative. Cooperative homeowners also benefit from a
30 per cent tax reduction on interest expenditures on either cooperative shares or
properties. Tenants may be evicted by the cooperative board only in a limited
number of circumstances. In the case of community funds, interest rates on loans are
usually relatively low and loan periods are often long, up to 25 years. 104
54. The Uruguayan mutual aid cooperatives promote affordable housing through a
collective process involving the future occupiers. Ownership, as well as
responsibility for the mortgage and maintenance of the property is collective and
indivisible. 105 Under the Federation of Mutual Aid Housing Cooperatives model,
families can get access to collective housing loans without previous savings
(particularly suitable for low-income households); the time they spend building the
houses is considered to be down payment (15 per cent of public bank mortgage). 106
Members pay a monthly share of the collective mortgage, an additional fee to the
Cooperative Fund for the maintenance of common spaces and services, and an
assistance fund for members that are temporarily unable to pay to the cooperative
due to various reasons (such as accident, loss of employment or death of bread
winner).
55. In the Uruguayan model, security of tenure is ensured by a contract between
the cooperative and the member (“contrato de uso y goce” of the Federation of
Mutual Aid Housing Cooperatives), which is not time bound. Each family enjoys
usufruct rights that can be inherited or sold back to the cooperative. The value of the
member’s share is paid back to him by the cooperative in two instalments over a
period of three years and comprises the value of labour hours; maintenance of the
common areas; the repaid amount of the loan; and the repaid interest. This prevents
a high member turnover and protects the cooperative from gentrification processes.
2.
Community land trusts
56. A community land trust is a form of common land ownership, wherein land is
considered to be a commonwealth, and only structures and other improvements are
considered private property. Community land trusts aim to remove land from the
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102
103
104
105
106
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National Confederation of Cooperatives, “Cooperatives in housing” (see footnote 91 above); see
also HSB, “Useful information for HSB tenant owners” (2012) and “Welcome to HSB: a booklet
for all those who have just move in” (2012).
S. Blandy, J. Dixon and A. Dupuis, eds., Multi-owned Housing: Law, Power and Practice
(Ashgate, 2010).
Such as in the case of the community mortgage programme in the Philippines.
B. Nahoum, Una Historia Con Quincemil Protagonistas: Las Cooperativas de Vivienda por
Ayuda Muta Uruguayas (Montevideo, Intendencia Municipal de Montevideo, 2008).
For instance, the Conjunto Intercooperativo, built between 1971 and 1975.
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