Photo by Ali Ahassanpour

By Ghanbar Naderi

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Sunday his administration will continue to regulate the housing market to keep prices in check and make buying houses affordable.
In a meeting with the Housing Foundation’s Central Council and other officials in Tehran, he stressed that all households, in particular newlyweds should have “an appropriate and decent house“ of their own.
He supported measures to build residential units in rural areas by the Foundation as very efficient and said similar methods could be used in the Mehr Housing Scheme to speed up the process of completing low-priced construction projects nationwide.
According to the president, the single most important concern of Iranian households for “over four decades“ has been and still is housing. “The housing market cannot self-regulate. Even if that happens it would not have the (desired) cultural effect,“ he noted.
He reiterated that it is paramount that the government intervenes in the housing market to keep prices in check as is the case in many countries.
“Market fluctuations can have an unsettling impact on family income and it is tantamount that the government eliminate middleman in this sector through taxation and effective regulatory methods.“
The president, however, maintained that his administration has no intention of “owning the housing market“ rather it wants to help ensure that all new families can afford a house.
To alleviate housing shortages and prevent increase in prices, the government plans to build over one million housing units each year in collaboration with the private sector under the Mehr Housing Scheme.
Thanks to the new regulations the housing market has reached relative stability since 2008. However supply is still not commensurate with demand.
The Ministry of Housing says the country will be able to build 1.5 million housing units per annum in the next three years. It has called on insurance companies to cooperate more effectively in construction projects.
Elsewhere in his remarks Ahmadinejad referred to the Housing Foundation as an efficient and essential institution, adding that it has the capacity and means to assist the government translate its new housing objectives into reality.
“Bureaucracy has undermined national development and the present administrative structure simply cannot meet the growing demand for housing.
However, it is still possible to renovate and build 200,000 housing units in rural areas in collaboration with the public and with the help of the Housing Foundation.“
According to him, 500,000 housing units have been built in rural areas over the past few years with 130,000 units under construction and 700,000 units planned.
The president concluded by saying that his administration will open a new credit line for housing projects and investors should be rest assured that the market is safe.
“The government will help real estate developers in the rural areas to construct standard and low-cost housing and/or renovate old infrastructure.“
The head of Housing Foundation, Alireza Tabesh told the meeting that under a comprehensive scheme one million housing units will be built this year in the rural regions.