Future Challenges for Renovation as Experienced by Swedish Housing Companies

Paper in proceeding, 2017

There is an extensive need for renovation in the existing housing stock and an increased rate of renovation activities is necessary not only to meet international climate and energy targets, but also in order to ensure buildings functions, technical qualities and to provide a good living environment. Thus, the challenges for the housing companies is to meet and balance all the different needs. Research focus on the development of decision support tools and expansion of the renovation discussion from not only a technical issue but also to include a social perspective. But how do housing companies manage renovation activities in a broader perspective and what are the related future challenges in renovation and transformation of building stocks? The aim of this study to investigate how larger housing companies act in renovation projects and to identify perceived challenges in relation to renovation. A questionnaire survey directed to the Swedish housing sector has been carried out including all housing companies with more than 20 employees. Out of 198 companies, 76 companies responded, which corresponds to a response rate of 38 percent. Results show that even if companies have environmental and energy goals or policies, only minor energy efficiency measurements are carried out in renovation projects. Social aspects are increasingly addressed both in policy and renovation. The largest challenges are economy and a limitation of the rent increases in order to ensure that the residents can remain in the apartment or in the housing area after renovation, i.e. to find appropriate rent levels. With a starting point in Swedish conditions, the results are of interest or the transformation process of the European housing stock.