CDC Habitat decided to create a single Social Enterprise for Housing (ESH) on 1 January, CDC Habitat social, a new legal entity resulting from the merger of its 13 historical ESHs. CDC Habitat social thus becomes the leading ESH in France with more than 191,000 housing units.
In 2017, these 13 ESHs started works on 5,740 social housing units. CDC Habitat has therefore started reorganising its social and intermediate housing activities across mainland France. Its transformation plan - Trajectoire 2022 - will be gradually implemented over the next 3 years with two objectives:
- solidify the Group and its fundamental missions (customer service, local management, development of heritage);
- assist local authorities with territorial and habitat policies.
According to André Yché, chair of CDC Habitat social’s board and chair of the CDC Habitat group’s board, “the new ESH aims to be a tool for metropolises, a place where their representatives discuss housing”. Seven of the eighteen Board members are in fact representatives of local authorities or territories.
This coming together is in keeping with the Elan Act, which plans to bring together HLM (rent-controlled housing) organisations with a view to improving their management and their financial solidity.
The 13 ESHs grouped within CDC Habitat social:
Osica, Efidis, La Plaine Normande, Société anonyme des marchés de l’ouest (Samo), Nouveau Logis Centre Limousin, SCIC Habitat Bourgogne, Nouveau Logis de l’Est, Coligny, Nouveau Logis Méridional, Nouveau Logis Provençal, Nouveau Logis Azur, Scic Habitat Auvergne et Bourbonnais, Scic Habitat Rhône-Alpes.
The Elan Act
The Elan Act (Evolution of housing, urban planning and digital technology) aims in particular to facilitate the building of new housing units. It was adopted on 16 October 2018. Social housing is one of the topics addressed by the Elan Act, which provides for the grouping of HLM organisations. The 800 existing social housing organisations will come together to improve their management and their financial solidity. HLM organisations that manage less than 12,000 housing units will be required to become part of a group of organisations as from 2021 (however there are exceptions, particularly relating to territory).