Access to healthy, decent and affordable accommodation, considered by the European Union as a basic right, is very much a part of the Maltese way of living. That this must equate with ownership of the property is mainly due to our antiquated rent laws, which simply make rental property unavailable to Maltese or simply not worth it.

The cost of property, especially apartments and maisonettes, favoured by young couples with middle income starting out in life, was the focus of a reflection paper, issued on Friday, by the Diocesan Commission for Justice and Peace. Godfrey Leone Ganado, who chairs the commission, called for "a truly anti-poverty and sustainable standard of living approach (which) cannot exclude housing from the collective aspects of the common good".

Once rental property is unavailable, young couples have no option but to buy the property of their choice, which Mr Leone Ganado calculates has increased at a compound rate of 56.6 per cent for apartments and 48.6 per cent for maisonettes since January 2004. Average prices in 2005 were between Lm55,000 and Lm68,000 for a three-bedroomed flat or maisonette.

Irrespective of the prices, the paper noted that, no matter how this accommodation is classified, the floor area of these properties is on a downward trend - so the cost per square metre is actually rising. There is also a tendency for other people being involved in the sale of these properties apart from the owners, developers and estate agents. These middlemen, whether individuals or consortia, led to what it termed "speculative practices" which contributed to pushing up the prices of these properties artificially.

Another inflationary practice was the trend for developers to buy property, mainly terraced houses and maisonettes that were less than 10 years old, to knock them down and build blocks of apartments. This was a waste of resources and an unnecessary strain on Malta's economy, leading to needless imports without creating added value.

The purchase of these properties was being financed by bank loans equivalent to 80 per cent of the cost with repayment terms of up to 35 years. Apart from the monthly repayments, there were added costs, like life and property insurance. The paper quantifies these costs and asks: is housing on the open market accessible to a couple with an annual income of Lm10,000?

The paper does not consider the rental option to be feasible, since buying remains the better option. The hard part is getting on the first rung of the ladder. What young couples need to consider is the necessity to scale down their expectations and opt for a smaller-sized property to start with and then consider 'trading up' as their salaries and job status improve.

Apart from the cost of loan repayments and insurance, the paper also lists the further financial burden of providing for second pillar pensions without which their standard of living on retirement would not be sustainable. Young couples will also tend to marry later in life and have fewer children, given all these costs.

The paper stressed that this anti-poverty, sustainable standard of living approach cannot exclude housing from the collective aspects of the common good, which also include the right to work, food, education and health. The housing market in Malta is also conditioned by the way members of society are living - with more separations and people living in single or small units, away from larger family units.

Certainly, there is a stratum of society that must always be open to assistance from the state. For these, the principle of the common good, quoted in the paper from The Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, is a principle to which every aspect of social life must be related if it is to attain its fullest meaning - the dignity, unity and equality of all people.

Otherwise the free market, entrepreneurship and the work ethic of the Maltese will ensure that their housing needs will always be within reach. Malta is a country with a largely homogenous people with access to a good standard of education. Living standards can only improve with a better educated population, which will indeed create even more demand for better property.

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