Opinion: New Law Will Reduce Engagement in Housing Cooperatives

A new Swedish law set to take effect on July 1 will significantly alter the landscape of housing cooperatives, making it easier for individuals to rent out one or two properties in the second-hand market. This legislation effectively overrides many bylaws previously established by the country's approximately 30,000 housing cooperatives, which often regulated aspects like second-hand rentals and membership.

Lena Heimlén, writing in Dagens Nyheter, expresses concern that the law will lead to fewer people engaging with their housing cooperatives. She anticipates that cooperatives will lose control over who resides in their buildings, making it more challenging to recruit volunteers for boards and other committees. This, she argues, will result in diminished resident involvement in tasks such as property maintenance and gardening.

Under the new regulations, cooperatives will be unable to refuse a member's request to rent out an apartment or two indefinitely, as "valid reasons" will no longer be required. This necessitates a rewriting of cooperative bylaws across the nation. Heimlén points to Qasa, a company that facilitates second-hand rentals, as a beneficiary of the law, noting its CEO's optimistic view on second-hand tenants participating in property upkeep. However, Heimlén draws a parallel to rental properties, suggesting that such engagement is rare.

Both Fastighetsägarna and Bostadsrätterna, influential bodies in the real estate sector, had previously warned of the potential problems this law could cause. Heimlén criticizes that these warnings and their "wise arguments" were disregarded during the legislative process. She highlights existing laws that already permit second-hand rentals with some cooperative oversight, providing security for residents. The new law, she fears, will exacerbate issues of tracking occupants and the potential for inflated rental prices through multiple subletting chains.

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The new law will mean that even fewer people will stand for election to housing cooperative boards and work teams. The cooperatives will also have less control over who actually lives in the house, writes Lena Heimlén.