Lisbon council set to approve 25-home scheme for under-35s
lisbon City Council is due today to approve a new affordable housing scheme for people aged up to 35 who have lived in the same parish as the property, or currently live there, within the past 10 years. The first phase will offer 25 homes across several areas of the city, with rents set under the municipal Affordable Rent Programme model.
Vasco Moreira Rato presents plan
Vasco Moreira Rato, the Lisbon councillor for Urban Planning, Housing and Municipal Buildings, will present the proposal. The scheme forms part of the Back to the Neighbourhood programme, which Carlos Moedas linked to a campaign promise during the municipal elections.
The city says the homes are meant to help younger residents return to the neighbourhoods where they grew up. Lisbon says rising housing costs have pushed many younger residents and local families out of the city centre and into surrounding municipalities.
Lisbon neighbourhoods in first phase
The initial 25 homes are spread across Santa Maria Maior, Avenidas Novas, Campo de Ourique, Misericórdia, Arroios, Lumiar, Santo António and São Domingos de Benfica. Lisbon plans to add a further 70 to 80 homes by the end of the year, with the programme expected to grow to around 700 properties by 2030.
Tenants will pay approximately one-third of their household income in rent. The scheme also includes foreign nationals who previously lived in the relevant neighbourhoods, and Moedas said, “There is no discrimination against any nationality.” He also said, “The objective is simply to recognise people who have an existing connection to these neighbourhoods.”
Back to the Neighbourhood
The practical barrier for applicants is specific: they must be under 35 and tied to the same parish as the property by residence now or within the previous 10 years. Moedas framed the policy in even narrower terms, saying, “There has to be an advantage for people who are from here.”
That leaves the first phase as a small opening in a much larger programme. The city is starting with 25 homes, but the stated goal is a far broader rollout that could reshape access to municipal housing across Lisbon if the additional properties are added on schedule.
