Empty houses in rural areas are also an opportunity
Some rural communities are struggling with a shortage of housing, with people such as teachers, doctors on call, seasonal workers and long-term project workers needing accommodation. Rental housing is also needed by young people from local families who are moving out on their own. Could a partial solution to the challenges of the housing market be found in the growing number of empty houses in rural areas?
Eija Kellokoski-Kari, Mayor of Veteli, explains what the local housing market looks like from the perspective of the municipality she leads.
- We have a really bad housing situation. Every day, the managing director of Vetelinrait, which serves the municipality's rental housing customers, and I discuss solutions to the situation. A large proportion of people looking for housing are casual workers who want small, cheap flats, but it seems that nowadays everyone else wants them too. Our housing stock is not designed for today. The number of single people is growing nationwide and the trend is similar here. The large family apartments are too big to meet demand, and the situation is complicated by the tightening of housing benefit limits," says Kellokoski-Kari.
"We are hoping for new taxpayers from permanent employees to the municipality"
One of the phenomena of the times is that people who come to work in the area often have families living elsewhere. The mayor says his greatest hope is to attract new taxpayers to the municipality.
- The municipality hopes that people who come to work here permanently will bring their families with them and move their books here. Then we will have more tax revenue to maintain our services. Of course, workers who stay for weeks use local services, but in the end, municipalities are the losers in this whole process.
In the case of Veteli, the difficulty of resolving the housing situation is compounded by the renovation of the school centre, which has left the municipality borrowing itself to the hilt. Kellokoski-Kari sees no possibility for the municipality to start building new rental housing in the current economic situation. She therefore encourages private operators to invest in new housing, as there is plenty of demand for apartments of the right size.
The idyllic Veteli village road.
"Renting can sometimes be a more profitable option than selling"
One partial solution, according to the mayor, could be unoccupied properties, which are on the increase in rural areas. In Vetel, the municipality has encouraged property owners to rent out empty detached houses.
- Individuals considering renting can get advice from the municipality if necessary, as it can be difficult to know at the beginning what all the landlord has to take into account and how to proceed.
Kellokoski-Kari says that many people would understandably want to sell an empty property, but renting may be an even more financially viable option.
- For example, companies that rent accommodation to their employees are reliable payers. Rental income also offers the opportunity to renovate the property and, for example, install geothermal heating. The more empty residential properties that can be brought back into residential use, the better it is for rural livelihoods," the mayor points out.
From a marketplace to a productive asset
Project manager Santtu Lehto from the Kaustinen sub-regional municipality is touring rural areas across Central Ostrobothnia as a representative of the Fibres for Use development project. The starting point of the project is digital development in villages, but in practice, empty houses and how to make them more accessible to seasonal workers, people working on large-scale projects, or even doctors on the road, come up every time.
- Nowadays, such places can be found in almost every village. Bringing these properties back into residential use would improve the supply of housing, and turn an empty property from an expense into a productive asset. Properties would no longer fall into disrepair and rental income could be used, for example, for property maintenance. At the same time, municipalities would be better placed to provide small rental dwellings for young people in their own communities. There is a serious risk that young people who move to their own communities will be forced to move away because of the poor housing situation, even if there is no real need to do so," says Lehto.
Project Manager Santtu Lehto
"Some owners renovate their property with rental income"
SuurhanketoimistoOn the .fi website, Jenni Kaustinen's JenninTuvat Oy, which offers its customers home-like accommodation, announces its housing offer. In addition to decorating the apartments she rents, Kaustinen tailors services ranging from laundry to cleaning and lawn mowing. The rental apartments are mostly occupied by Keliber employees, but also by people involved in wind power projects. Family accommodation at the Kaustinen Folk Music Festival is famous in the country, and Jenni Kaustinen and her family are one of the hosts of the festival people.
She works with Terhi Salmela's Amalia Cottages to provide accommodation. Jenni Kaustinen sees a lot of potential in accommodation in general.
And could empty houses in the countryside be a partial solution to short- or long-term accommodation needs?
- Indeed, they could be. I also have clients who own a house here but live elsewhere. They are happy for me to take care of the practicalities for them, so that the house they are living in does not deteriorate and the value of the property is better preserved. Some owners build up a buffer from their rental income, which they use to renovate the house. For some owners, the rental income is enough to cover the costs of the property," says Jenni Kaustinen.
Entrepreneur Jenni Kaustinen sees a lot of potential in accommodation services. In addition to accommodation, Kaustinen provides catering services and hires out staff.
"New residents in empty houses enliven the countryside"
Mirva Loihtua is a project manager in the New Winds of Housing project. The project seeks innovative and sustainable solutions to housing challenges in areas such as the Sydänsuomessa region in north central Finland. Loihtua has noticed that underused housing in rural areas is a hot topic in municipalities.
However, supply and needs can vary widely. While some municipalities have an acute shortage of rental housing, others have an abundant supply of rental housing. And the needs of those seeking housing are not the same. While some highly educated people prefer quality housing close to services, others, such as multi-location teleworkers or value-based labour migrants, would prefer to live a little further away from the water, but with easy access to transport, whatever the time of year.
When it comes to vacant houses in rural areas, Loihtua says he has come across a situation where there are people who want to rent, but the family, for example, does not want to rent the house. However, based on his own experience, he encourages owners to put empty residential properties to good use.
- We had an apartment in the north that we rented to miners, and from the landlord's point of view they are the best group. They're sure payers, they sleep in the flat and they don't have small children or dogs, for example, which would sort of consume the flat. When you get tenants in houses, it livens up the countryside and keeps the properties in better condition.
- If a tenant is interested in renovating, they can agree to have the maintenance of the property compensated in one way or another in the rent. And let's not forget that empty homes offer an opportunity for business. For example, an entrepreneur who acquires rental properties and then passes them on to tenants," Loihtua says.
Whatever the perspective on housing and housing in rural areas, Loihtua has a strong wish for municipal decision-makers.
- Housing should be included in municipal strategies as a separate sector, which would give a long-term perspective to development. At present, housing may be dealt with in a roundabout way, for example in the sustainable development section.
In the heart of the country, idyllic accommodation is on offer. More information at sydansuomessa.fi
Ready-made digital solutions to facilitate accommodation operations
For supply and demand to meet, a platform is needed to showcase the supply of accommodation. For almost two years, this platform has been suurhanketoimisto.fi, which provides, among other things, the latest accommodation available. Suurhanketoimisto The .fi site is open to both individuals and companies offering accommodation for major projects.
In addition, Codetag, a software company based in Kaustis, has developed Flatco, a platform for accommodation providers to help landlords manage their properties. Flatco also displays vacant apartments with photos and property information.
- This module can be installed on existing websites. In addition to the availability of property information, those who need to find a property can submit an application for accommodation through the service. The module is ideal for an entrepreneur who wants to connect landlords and home seekers," says Jarkko Liedes, CEO of Codetagint.
The rights to the aerial photos are held by the municipality of Veteli.
