Luxembourg Presents Specifications, Standard Plans to Advance Affordable Housing

On Monday 28 April 2025, Luxembourg’s Ministry of Housing and Spatial Planning, in partnership with the Order of Architects and Consulting Engineers (OAI), held a conference at Forum da Vinci in Luxembourg-Ville to present updated specifications and newly developed standard plans for affordable housing projects.

This initiative, launched in response to demand from sector stakeholders, aims to provide clearer, more practical tools (in the form of standard plans) to support social developers in addressing the country's affordable housing needs. According to the ministry, the standard plans specifically provide both clear guidance and concrete examples, showing stakeholders how the guiding principles may be implemented in practice.

OAI President Michelle Friederici opened the conference by emphasising the collaboration between the OAI and the Ministry of Housing and Spatial Planning in developing the new "cahier des charges" (specifications document) and standard plans. Speaking in Luxembourgish, she explained that the aim was to simplify processes for those involved, adding that the plans are detailed but adaptable.

Luxembourg's Minister of Housing and Spatial Planning, Claude Meisch, also speaking in Luxembourgish, described affordable housing as "an extremely important topic" in Luxembourg. He stated: "With the standard plans, we are providing social developers with an effective working tool for the construction of affordable housing. The aim is to provide guidelines and optimisation, to standardise without sacrificing quality – to build faster, more efficiently and more targetedly in the right locations." He also stressed the importance of "common understanding" among stakeholders (including private developers and municipalities) to reach common goals faster.

The main part of the conference was a presentation delivered (in Luxembourgish) by Annick Rock from the ministry's "Aides à la pierre" department. She first gave an overview of the "Aides à la pierre" financial aid scheme, which grants subsidies to "social promoters" (public and non-profit social housing developers) to support the construction of affordable or moderate-cost housing. Social developers can receive up to 75% of eligible costs for affordable rental housing (plus a 15% bonus for innovative / climate-resilient projects), while public developers can obtain up to 50% for affordable housing for sale. For further details, visit https://logement.public.lu/fr/professionnels/aides-etatiques.html.

Annick Rock also outlined the application process for social developers, as well as the CaaP consultative committee evaluation process.

Turning her attention to the specifications and the standard plans, she explained how these are tailored to different types of housing projects. These include more general affordable housing and dedicated affordable housing, for example catering to students, independent older people, independent disabled people and young people aged 32 and under. She outlined specific guidelines in terms of space, accessibility and communal amenities.

The event continued with a Q&A session followed by a reception.

The ministry added in a press release that "the development of the standard plans is part of the drive for administrative simplification, regular exchanges with sector professionals and strengthening the operational capacities of social developers". The plans are the result of collaboration between the ministry, the OAI and experienced social developers who have completed affordable housing projects.

For further details or project-related inquiries, visit www.logement.lu or contact the "Aides à la pierre" department via email: aidesalapierre@ml.etat.lu.