Social Housing and Housing Justice

30-Second Overview

Housing is a basic human need and a key government responsibility. Since 2016, Taiwan has pursued an "8-Year 200,000-Unit Social Housing" policy, advancing on two tracks — direct construction and rent-subsidy intermediation (包租代管) — to realize "housing justice." This policy attempts to reframe the nature of housing, shifting it from a pure commodity back toward a guarantee of the right to adequate shelter.

By the end of 2024, the policy had completed approximately 213,000 units, exceeding its target. Yet high housing prices and rental market difficulties have not dissolved alongside it. The role and limitations of social housing remain a central issue in Taiwan's policy debates.

Keywords: social housing, housing justice, rent-subsidy intermediation, Housing Act, youth housing security, housing for vulnerable groups

Why It Matters

Housing is the foundation on which people build their lives, raise families, and pursue their dreams. When the price-to-income ratio reaches 15–20, many young people fall into the trap of being "unable to buy, unable to rent well." Social housing has become a key policy tool for the government's response to housing justice.

The significance of social housing policy goes beyond building houses. It represents a choice: enabling economically disadvantaged groups to enjoy decent living quality, giving young people the chance to settle, and using urban renewal to improve aging communities.

From an international comparative perspective, Taiwan's proportion of social housing remains on the lower side. But the rapid expansion since 2016 has moved this issue from the margins to the mainstream of policy.

• Social equity: Enabling economically disadvantaged groups to enjoy decent living quality
• Intergenerational justice: Giving young people the chance to settle without bearing crushing mortgage debt
• Urban development: Guiding urban regeneration and improving aging community environments
• Social harmony: Reducing social tensions arising from housing problems

The Current State of Taiwan's Housing Problems

The Housing Dilemma in the Era of High Prices

Taipei's price-to-income ratio stands at approximately 15–16 (2024 data), New Taipei City at around 12–13, and Taoyuan at about 9–10 — far exceeding the internationally reasonable standard of 5–6.¹ An average family would need 10–15 years of income, without spending on anything else, to purchase a home. Many young people are forced to turn to the rental market.

But the rental market is equally fraught: a large proportion of rentals operate in the "black market," landlords commonly do not report rental income for tax purposes, rents are opaque, short-term leases are the norm, and tenant rights lack effective protection. These two overlapping dilemmas make housing one of the most urgent policy issues in Taiwanese society.

Housing Needs of Specific Groups

• Young people: Salaries cannot keep up with housing prices; buying a home is out of reach
• Single-parent families: Heavy economic burden, limited rental options
• Elderly: Fixed incomes are declining, creating housing insecurity
• People with disabilities: Require accessible environments; options are even scarcer

Policy Evolution Background

Early Housing Policy (1950–2010)
Taiwan's early housing policy focused on "encouraging home purchases":

• Public housing (國宅) policy: Building public housing for sale at preferential rates
• Preferential home-purchase loans: Supporting home buying through financial policy
• Tax refunds on replacement purchases, first-time-buyer incentives: Tax benefits to encourage buying
• Problem: Primary beneficiaries were the middle class; disadvantaged groups benefited limitedly

Enactment of the Housing Act (2011–2016)
The Housing Act was enacted in 2011, establishing a new direction for housing policy:²

• Establishing the "right to housing" as a basic human right
• Creating the legal foundation for social housing
• Promoting a rent subsidy system
• But enforcement was insufficient, and social housing construction proceeded slowly

Social Housing Policy Content

The 8-Year 200,000-Unit Plan

After the new administration took office in 2016, it proposed the "8-Year 200,000-Unit Social Housing" policy:³

Policy Targets

• Construct 200,000 social housing units from 2017 to 2024
• 120,000 units through direct construction
• 80,000 units through rent-subsidy intermediation (包租代管)
• Total investment approximately NT$44 billion

Implementation Strategy

1. Central-local cooperation: The National Housing and Urban Renewal Center (國家住都中心) coordinates planning
2. Diverse land sources: State-owned land, urban renewal allocations, donations, etc.
3. Innovative financing mechanisms: Housing Fund, special budgets under the Forward-Looking Infrastructure Development Program
4. Professional team execution: Establishing dedicated agencies to improve implementation efficiency

Dual-Track Approach

Track 1: Direct Construction
The government directly constructs, owns, and manages social housing:

• Construction target: 120,000 units
• Funding sources: Housing Fund, special budgets
• Management: Government-operated or outsourced to private management
• Feature: Better quality control; complete community facilities can be planned

Track 2: Rent-Subsidy Intermediation (包租代管)
The government partners with private landlords to match vulnerable tenants:

• Target units: 80,000
• Operating models:
  • Rental intermediation (包租): The government leases private housing and sublets it to vulnerable households
  • Management intermediation (代管): Assisting landlords with tenant sourcing and providing management services
• Advantage: Activates vacant housing stock, rapidly increasing social housing supply

Implementation Results Statistics

Statistics as of the End of 2024

• By the end of 2024, approximately 213,000 units had been completed, exceeding the 200,000-unit target with an achievement rate of 107%⁴

Regional Distribution

• The six special municipalities account for approximately 75%, concentrated in Taipei-New Taipei, Taoyuan, and Taichung
• New Taipei City: 32,000 units (the most)
• Taipei City: 28,000 units
• Taoyuan City: 21,000 units
• Taichung City: 19,000 units

Social Housing Design Philosophy

Taiwan's social housing design philosophy starts from "social mix" (社會混居), deliberately avoiding the poverty concentration problems seen in Hong Kong public housing or American social housing, allowing residents of different backgrounds to live together.

Social Mix Principle

Vulnerable households are guaranteed a 30% occupancy ratio, while general households (prioritizing youth, newlyweds, and families with children) account for 70%. Regular lotteries ensure fairness. The scope of vulnerable groups as defined by the Housing Act is broad, covering low-income households, households in special circumstances, families raising three or more minor children, elderly persons, victims of domestic violence, people with disabilities, Indigenous peoples, disaster victims, and others.

Scope of Vulnerable Groups
As defined by the Housing Act, these include:

• Low-income and lower-middle-income households
• Households in special circumstances
• Families raising three or more minor children
• Those unable to return home after placement in foster care or institutional care
• Persons aged 65 and above
• Victims of domestic violence or sexual assault and their children
• People with disabilities
• Persons infected with HIV or living with AIDS
• Indigenous peoples
• Disaster victims
• Homeless persons
• Others designated by the competent authority

Community Facility Planning

Essential Facilities

• Barrier-free environment: Accessible ramps, elevators, and unit designs
• Childcare: Priority given to non-profit kindergartens
• Long-term care stations: Day care centers, community care gathering points
• Community activity spaces: Assembly halls, reading rooms
• Commercial facilities: Convenience stores, laundromats, and other neighborhood services

Innovative Design

In recent years, social housing has continued to experiment with innovative facilities. Maker spaces provide youth entrepreneurship studios, while shared kitchens promote resident interaction. Rooftop farms combine urban agriculture with environmental education, and resource recycling centers advance circular economy principles. Some newer developments have introduced IoT devices to create smart community management platforms.

Rent Affordability Principle

85% of Market Rate Principle

• Rents are set at 85% of surrounding market rates
• Avoids excessive subsidies that could distort the market
• Ensures affordability for general households

Tiered Subsidy System

• Tier 1 (Extremely low income): Rent at 30% of market rate
• Tier 2 (Low-income households): Rent at 50% of market rate
• Tier 3 (Lower-middle-income households): Rent at 70% of market rate
• Tier 4 (General households): 85% of market rate

Notable Social Housing Cases

Taiwan's social housing cases demonstrate a range of approaches from design philosophy to community building. Several representative projects have become national policy benchmarks. Taipei Jiankang Social Housing (completed 2017), New Taipei Zhonghe Youth Social Housing (2019), and Taoyuan Bade Social Housing (2020) represent different scales and design orientations.

What these three cases share is a vision that goes beyond purely residential functions, integrating public facilities such as kindergartens, long-term care stations, and youth entrepreneurship spaces into social housing to form composite community living spheres. This "social housing as community" planning philosophy has gradually influenced the design of subsequent new developments.

Taipei Jiankang Social Housing

Located in Zhongshan District, Taipei, Jiankang Social Housing was completed in 2017 with 1,400 units, making it Taipei City's first large-scale social housing development. The building facade features vertical greening design to mitigate the urban heat island effect. Inside, it houses a non-profit kindergarten, a senior day care center, and a youth entrepreneurship space called the "Jiankang Creative Base for Happy Living." It also introduced a smart parking system and a community app for management.

The most important social significance of this case lies in changing the public stereotype that social housing equates to "slums." It also spurred revitalization of the surrounding commercial district, becoming a benchmark for social housing planning in other counties and cities.

New Taipei Zhonghe Youth Social Housing

Completed in 2019 with 522 units, New Taipei Zhonghe Youth Social Housing is most notable for combining urban renewal with social housing. The same building incorporates social housing, retail space, and office space. It includes a community-based long-term care facility, a rooftop farm, and a rainwater recycling system, earning a Diamond-level green building certification. On the community governance front, residents formed a "Youth Participation Group" and regularly organize community festival events. Resident satisfaction surveys reached over 85%, making it one of Taiwan's successful cases of social housing community building.

Taoyuan Bade Social Housing

Completed in 2020 with 1,003 units, Taoyuan Bade Social Housing is the largest single social housing project in Taiwan. The site is adjacent to light rail transit infrastructure, with 300 scooter parking spaces and 50 car parking spaces. Commercial facilities include well-known brands such as PX Mart and Starbucks. Community amenities include a kindergarten, a long-term care center, and an activity center. On the management side, it uses an AI facial recognition access control system and a community app integrating various services, and has established a community volunteer system. It is one of the most technologically advanced social housing cases in Taiwan.

Rent-Subsidy Intermediation Policy

Rent-subsidy intermediation is the second track of Taiwan's social housing policy. Through government intervention in the private rental market, it rapidly increases social housing supply while activating vacant housing stock. As of the end of 2024, approximately 68,000 units had been matched, benefiting around 27,000 vulnerable households.

Operating Models

Rental Intermediation (包租) Model
The government leases private housing through professional operators and sublets it to vulnerable households:

• Lease term: 3 years, extendable up to 6 years
• Government lease price: 80–90% of market rate
• Sublet price: 60–70% of market rate
• The government bears the vacancy risk

Management Intermediation (代管) Model

The government matches landlords with tenants, with professional operators responsible for tenant screening, rent collection, and maintenance coordination. The government provides renovation subsidies (up to NT$10,000–30,000 per unit), reduced housing and land value taxes, home safety insurance coverage, and dispute mediation and legal consultation services to reduce landlords' rental risks.

Implementation Mechanisms and Results

Approximately 200 operators currently participate, spanning residential services, real estate brokerage, and property management. As of the end of 2024, rent-subsidy intermediation had matched approximately 68,000 units, with around 55,000 participating landlords, approximately 27,000 beneficiary vulnerable households, and approximately NT$120 billion in private housing investment mobilized.

Key challenges include: some landlords' reluctance to participate due to concerns about tenant quality, the concentration of available units in metropolitan areas, the fact that extremely vulnerable households still struggle with current rent levels, and significant variations in service quality among different operators.

Policy Effects and Social Impact

Quantitative Impact Analysis

On the supply side, the social housing policy has added approximately 200,000 units to the rental market, market rent increases have moderated, and rental market transparency has improved alongside the promotion of the rent-subsidy intermediation system. On the demand side, the policy is estimated to have resolved the housing problems of approximately 400,000–500,000 people, increased housing stability for vulnerable groups, and improved youth housing security ratios. The ripple effects on the industry side are equally significant: a residential services industry has emerged, driving development in construction and renovation, and creating approximately 30,000–40,000 jobs.

Social Impact Assessment

Realizing Housing Justice

The spatial quality of newly built social housing is generally superior to that of typical rentals. Community facilities are comprehensively planned, rent levels are more affordable relative to the market, and longer-term housing security is provided. For groups that have long occupied a disadvantaged position in the rental market, this represents a tangible improvement.

Social Integration and Urban Development

Mixed-income design allows vulnerable and general households to live together, avoiding the concentration of poverty. Some social housing cases have also driven development in surrounding commercial districts, serving as catalysts for urban regeneration in aging communities and improving overall community environmental quality.

International Experience Comparison

Singapore's HDB System

Singapore is known for its government-led, large-scale construction of HDB (Housing and Development Board) flats, with approximately 85% of the population living in HDB housing. An ethnic quota system promotes ethnic integration, and linkage with the pension system encourages homeownership. Taiwan can learn from its long-term stable policy execution and comprehensive community planning philosophy, but Taiwan places greater emphasis on rental rather than ownership, making the overall direction somewhat different.

Dutch Social Housing

Dutch social housing accounts for approximately 34% of the national housing stock (2023 statistics), constructed and managed by non-profit housing associations, with an income-based tiered system ensuring fair allocation. The Netherlands' emphasis on architectural design quality and sustainable environments provides a reference for Taiwan in terms of quality orientation.

Hong Kong Public Housing

Approximately 45% of Hong Kong's population lives in public housing, divided into public rental housing and Home Ownership Scheme flats. Taiwan has consciously differentiated itself from the Hong Kong model: placing greater emphasis on social mix, avoiding large-scale concentrated development, and focusing on comprehensive community facility support to prevent "poverty concentration."

Future Challenges and Development

Major Challenges

Social housing policy faces four main structural challenges. Land acquisition is the first hurdle: urban land is scarce and expensive, landowner cooperation willingness is low, urban planning change procedures are complex, and public NIMBY ("Not In My Backyard") sentiment toward social housing being built nearby makes site selection extremely difficult. On the financial side, rising construction costs, long-term operating expenses, and Housing Fund pressures also crowd out government budgets.

Some members of the public still hold the "slum" stereotype about social housing, worrying about impacts on surrounding property values. Community integration requires time and ongoing communication. On the management front, cohabitation of residents with different needs, community facility maintenance costs, and high resident turnover rates place high demands on the professional capabilities of management teams.

Future Development Directions

Policy recommendations from the industry cover several areas: amending the Housing Act, strengthening the legal basis, and promoting dedicated social housing legislation are institutional priorities. In terms of financing innovation, introducing private capital, developing social housing REITs, and land trust systems can help expand resource sources. Smart management (IoT systems, community app integration) and the promotion of green building certification are paths to quality improvement. Regional balanced development also deserves attention: social housing is currently highly concentrated in the six special municipalities, and housing needs in non-urban areas await greater policy focus.

Conclusion: Toward Housing Justice

Social housing embodies the practice of social values, not merely a housing policy. Since Taiwan began promoting the 8-Year 200,000-Unit Plan in 2016, it has not only come close to meeting its quantitative targets but has also established a "Taiwan model" in qualitative terms:

The characteristics of Taiwan's social housing lie in several core choices: using mixed-income design to avoid poverty concentration, complementing direct construction with rent-subsidy intermediation on dual tracks, emphasizing design aesthetics and community functionality, and adapting to Taiwan's climate and cultural characteristics. This "Taiwan model" is still being refined, but it has already formed an identifiable policy path.

A Vision for the Future
Ensuring that everyone living in Taiwan, regardless of economic means, can enjoy a decent, stable, and dignified living environment. Only by achieving this goal can Taiwan build a fairer and more inclusive society.

Realizing housing justice requires the joint efforts of all of society. The government provides the policy framework and resources, professionals contribute technology and creativity, and the public offers understanding and support — only then can social housing truly fulfill its role and propel Taiwanese society forward.

Further Reading:

• Iron-Sheet Houses — The governance dilemma of 716,000 illegal structures across Taiwan; rooftop additions and unauthorized construction are part of the underlying structure of the housing justice issue
• Taiwan Environmental Justice and NIMBY Controversies — The land-use extension of housing issues: unequal distribution of environmental risks and community conflicts over NIMBY facilities

References

1. Ministry of the Interior, National Land Management Agency, "Social Housing Promotion Results Report," December 2024
2. National Housing and Urban Renewal Center, "Social Housing Construction Plan Implementation Results," 2024
3. Executive Yuan, "Social Housing Construction Plan," March 2017 approved version
4. Housing Act (2017 Amended Version), Laws & Regulations Database of the Republic of China
5. Urban Redevelopment Research and Development Foundation, "Urban Renewal Promotion Results Statistics," 2024
6. Wikipedia, "Taiwan Social Housing" entry, March 2024 version
7. Urban Renewal Complete Guide, "Direct Construction and Rent-Subsidy Intermediation Numbers Hit Record High" report, 2024
8. Taipei City Department of Urban Development, "Social Housing Policy White Paper," 2023
9. New Taipei City Urban and Rural Development Bureau, "New Taipei City Social Housing Development Plan," 2024
10. Taoyuan City Housing Development Office, "Taoyuan City Social Housing Promotion Results," 2024
11. Tsuei Ma Ma Foundation, "Rental Market Status Survey Report," 2024
12. Social Housing Advocacy Coalition, "Social Housing Policy Recommendations," 2023