Housing Recession in Iran Turns 8 Years Old; Media Reports: Increased Interest of Citizens in 'Middle-Aged Homes'

As the 'recession' in the housing sector enters its 'eighth year', Iranian media have reported that citizens are turning to 'middle-aged homes' to secure shelter due to the high prices of newly constructed and safe houses. The newspaper 'Donya-e-Eqtesad' in its special report on Tuesday, April 30, noted that the residential construction market in the capital has recorded its 'eighth consecutive year of recession', stating that last year 'construction operations' for less than '65,000 housing units' began in Tehran. The media further mentioned that the low level of construction last year, compared to the early 2010s - the last period of housing construction boom - and also the entire 2000s, represents the 'lowest production volume'. Hamidreza Sarami, the Deputy of Urban Planning and Architecture of Tehran Municipality, announced in a crisis management meeting on August 4, 2022, that homelessness is 'taking shape' in Tehran, referring to what he called 'termite-like unrest' in the metropolis. Simultaneously, the state news agency 'ISNA', citing some 'real estate consultants', reported that in recent days 'middle-aged apartments' have gained more favor compared to 'new units' among buyers and sellers of housing. Meanwhile, Donya-e-Eqtesad emphasized that the amount of 'annual housing market demand' for new supply - considering factors such as annual marriages, divorce rates, and the volume of dilapidated houses - is also 'less'. Accordingly, investigations into the 'recession in the housing construction market' reveal the existence of 'three major obstacles' facing builders: 'surge in housing prices and a severe reduction in the purchasing power of consumer demand', which has disrupted the performance of the last link in the production chain (easy and sustainable sales); 'high inflation in housing production' and 'instability of costs throughout the construction process.' Ebrahim Raisi and figures close to him have repeatedly promised during the presidential election campaign in June 2021 to build 'one million housing units per year' and ultimately 'four million new housing units' by the end of this government; a plan based on the 'Housing Production Leap Law' and dubbed 'National Housing Movement'. Despite the passage of more than two years, no report has been published regarding the success of this promise. In this context, Mohammad Wahidi, a representative from Bojnourd in the Islamic Consultative Assembly, reported in an interview with the 'Eghtesad24' website about the recent presence of the Minister of Roads and Urban Development and his deputies in the 'Urban Development' commission, providing a report on the housing situation, stating: 'The explanations given by Bazrpash and his deputies in the meeting with representatives indicated that efforts to grease the wheels of the plan to build four million housing units in the thirteenth government continue, but I did not see a hopeful point in the discussions, and it seemed that the minister was not very optimistic about this issue.'