A large-scale project is starting in Ukraine aimed at creating affordable housing for internally displaced persons (IDPs) by converting abandoned buildings. The Ministry of Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine, in collaboration with the international organization Habitat for Humanity in Ukraine, is initiating a partnership that includes the identification, assessment, and classification of unused buildings and premises for their subsequent conversion into modern housing for displaced persons.
This is reported by Business • Media
Inventory of Real Estate and Practical Tools for Communities
As of August 2025, over 4.6 million internally displaced persons are officially registered in Ukraine. In this regard, the government has already approved relevant resolutions to conduct a large-scale inventory of properties, opening up opportunities to effectively utilize the potential of vacant real estate. The project involves not only buildings but also land plots and other facilities that can be adapted to meet the needs of IDPs.
Over the course of the year, it is planned to map and classify up to a thousand real estate objects, as well as prepare 10 to 15 investment cases with detailed calculations and reconstruction concepts. In addition, practical tools will be developed for local government bodies, allowing for effective coordination of housing project implementation.
Involving International Experience and Investor Potential
The inventory of vacant properties and the preparation of investment profiles will serve as the foundation for attracting both international donors and private businesses to the development of housing infrastructure for IDPs. Habitat for Humanity has significant experience in this area. In particular, in Poland in 2022, the organization identified over 63,000 abandoned properties in the municipal housing stock and implemented a number of pilot projects in Warsaw and Katowice. In the United Kingdom in 2023, a nationwide database of more than 165,000 unused premises was created, along with a step-by-step toolkit for repurposing them into social housing.
The government has already adopted the necessary resolutions to conduct a large-scale inventory of properties; however, the implementation of this process requires the involvement of international experience and technical support.