The housing issue in today's Kazakhstani agenda is one of the most urgent . Demographic growth and the "aging" housing stock are the main factors that actualize the problem. The government faces a difficult challenge. It is necessary to increase the pace of housing construction in order to replenish the retiring areas, as well as to cover the growing needs for square meters. The correspondent of El.kz conducted an analysis of the sphere of housing construction in Kazakhstan.
Demographics and housing stock
As a result of the high birth rate and increased life expectancy, population growth in the country is recorded every year. If you look at the official statistics, over the past five years, the population in the country has increased by 1.6 million citizens - from 18.1 million to 19.7 million people, which means that the need for new living space is growing.
If we rely on the data of the new concept for the development of housing and communal infrastructure until 2026, then so far Kazakhstanis, as of the beginning of 2022, have 387.7 million square meters at their disposal. That is how much space the housing stock of the whole country has. 250.2 million square meters or 64.5% of it are located in cities and urban settlements, and 137.5 million square meters (35.5%) - in rural settlements.
Housing
The concept of "improving housing conditions" for Kazakhstanis is extensible. For someone, this is a change in the level of comfort and prestige, and for others - the basic need to acquire the cherished "squares". As a rule, it is very difficult, and often impossible, to solve your problem with the second one yourself. For such categories of citizens in the republic there are housing programs from the state.
Kazakhstanis from socially segments of the population can receive subsidies to pay rent from the private sector, as well as preferential mortgages. According to the Ministry of Industry and Infrastructure Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan, more than 620 thousand Kazakhstanis are on the waiting list for housing under state programs in the republic.
If we start from the UN standards, then ideally the provision of housing for one person should be 30 square meters. In Kazakhstan, there is an improvement in the situation on this indicator. So, in 2021, on average, there were 23.2 square meters per person living in Kazakhstan. The level increased by 5.9% compared to the level of 2018. That is, five years ago, on average, there was less per person by 1.3 square meters.
In housing construction in the period of the last four years, there has been a positive trend. From 2018 to 2022, 73.4 million square meters of housing were built in the country. A record volume of commissioning in the country was noted in 2021 - then 17.1 million square meters were "raised" in Kazakhstan. Last year, there was a decline to 15.4 million square meters, which exceeds the results of 2018-2019-2020.
The most significant decrease occurred in Astana and Almaty - by 24.7% and 34.6%, respectively. And this is logical, since in the industry there are disproportions in the volume of construction. The main construction boom is concentrated in cities that have become centers of attraction for citizens.
Logistical challenges
There are several reasons for the slowdown in the commissioning of new space in 2022. This is the rise in prices for building materials, and difficulties with their supply from abroad. It should be noted that the share of imports in the domestic market of building materials today accounts for 34%. Disruption of logistics chains of construction products occurs due to the unfavorable geopolitical situation.
A very illustrative example happened in the capital, where construction companies postponed the commissioning of residential complexes. In addition to difficulties with the import component of construction, developers are experiencing problems with a shortage of utility capacity. In turn, this is due to the fact that due to difficulties with the import of the necessary equipment to launch the construction of CHPP-3 in the capital, they are late with the launch dates of this important enterprise.
Using pension savings has become more difficult
It is reflected in the pace of construction and a decrease in effective demand from buyers, which is associated with a reduction in early withdrawals of pension funds. Last year, the excess amounts that can be used from the UAPF for housing needs were increased several times. After that, there was a decrease in activity in the residential real estate market. So, in 2022, 465,822 housing purchase and sale transactions were made, which is 23.1% less than in 2021.
Recall that at the initiative of the Head of State, Kazakhstanis were given the opportunity to use one-time pension savings. Since the launch of the campaign, more than 900,000 people have used their savings to address housing issues. It is logical that such a massive arrival of "pension" in the housing market led to a rush demand, and, accordingly, to a rise in prices per square meter.
Mortgages in monotowns, subsidies to employers
The leaders in housing construction are Astana and Almaty. An innovation of housing policy in Kazakhstan will be a turn to remote settlements. Such measures are provided for in the framework of the concept of development of housing and communal infrastructure until 2026. According to the concept, a mortgage lending program will be launched specifically for residents of monotowns with low development potential.