Yes We rent participates in a conference to present its model as an alternative to traditional access to housing.

Yes We Rent! and Bloc Cooperatiu, the tenants’ cooperative set up throughout the project, were invited to the third of these sessions to present the idea of a tenant’s cooperative as a possible solution to the problems of young people to access affordable rental housing.

Set in late 2018, Yes We Rent aims to transform the housing rental market in Mataró by offering tenants access to affordable housing with social and solidarity values. In this regard, the model is expected to have a positive impact regarding youth emancipation.

During the session, the project was presented as an alternative to traditional access to housing, particularly through the idea of decommodification and self-organization in housing. The presentation also highlighted the significant impact of the project in the city so far, as cooperative Bloc Cooperatiu has 70 members and increasing, 23 of whom are already living in the flats of the project. The members of Bloc Cooperatiu have highly heterogeneous profiles, showing that the problem of access to affordable housing is crosscutting, with a special impact on the youth.

Where else has the Yes We Rent Project been presented in 2021?

During 2021 the project Yes We Rent was presented in different forums and specialized conferences on housing. Staff from the Housing Department of Mataró City Council presented the project in other events throughout the year such as:

• “Actions to mobilize empty housing” session organized by the Girona Provincial Council in March (online)
• Curing the Limbo (UIA project) final event in Athens in April (online)
• URBACT Urban Transfer conference in September in Madrid (Spain)
• Conference on “Empty Housing” innovation in October in Valencia (Spain)
• Conference on "Public Policies and Empty Housing: The right to housing in the face of speculation" in November in Castellón (Spain)
   

Moreover, the Mayor of Mataró, David Bote, participated in the conference organised in October by the Barcelona Provincial Council to address public-community collaboration through the experience of Yes We Rent.