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Five of Vienna’s landmark social housing complexes

Vienna is known for its dedication to social housing, focusing on functionality and community. Here are five of the city's most interesting housing complexes.

Published: 30 August 2024 16:13 CEST
Five of Vienna's landmark social housing complexes
Alterlaa is one of Viennas most famous social housing complexes. Photo by Nick Night on Unsplash
Vienna is famous for its innovative approach to social housing.
 
In the 20th century, led by the social democrats during a time referred to as “Red Vienna, the city undertook major projects to create affordable and high-quality homes for its residents.

The focus was mainly on improving the living standards of the working-class while also creating a sense of community through many common areas.

These are five of Vienna’s most important social housing complexes, each with its own unique design and historical background.

Karl-Marx-Hof

Karl-Marx-Hof is one of Vienna’s most famous and historically significant social housing complexes.

It was designed by architect Karl Ehn and built between 1927 and 1930, during the time of “Red Vienna” and it was part of a broader effort to solve housing shortages and improve urban living standards. It is a great example of early 20th-century social housing, still ongoing today.

Karl-Marx-Hof is one of the longest residential buildings in the world, stretching 1.2 kilometres in total. The complex is made up of a series of connected buildings and has a red brick facade with lots of windows and balconies, meant to create a sense of community and improve natural light and space for the residents.

The building was designed by architect Karl Ehn between 1927 and 1930, during a tough economic period in Vienna. Except from the apartments, the building also has courtyards, playgrounds, a bar, a sports club, and other shared spaces, aimed at creating a sense of community.

You find the building in Heiligenstadt and in one of the building’s laundry rooms, you can enjoy different exhibitions and book guided tours of the complex. Check it out here.

 
 
 
 
 
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READ MORE: ‘Betriebskosten’: What are the extra costs renters must pay in Austria?

Alterlaa

Alterlaa is another famous and interestingly shaped large social housing complex in Vienna.

The complex was designed by architect Harry Glück and was built in 1985.

Alterlaa is located in Meidling and it was also developed as part of Vienna’s effort to provide affordable housing while maintaining a high quality of life.

The complex offers green spaces, playgrounds, common rooms, and small stores, which are integrated into the design to improve the living experience for residents.

The complex also has swimming pools on the roof terraces, where residents can swim, relax, and enjoy great views of Vienna and the surroundings.

This unique design of the complex was intended to give residents a sense of living close to nature, despite being in a dense urban area. The terraces are large enough to host small gardens, where residents can grow greenery and enjoy an outdoor space in their own home.

The complex offers 3,200 apartments, and as of 2022, about 9,000 people lived there. The average apartment size is 74.5 square meters.

Around 9.000 people live in the social housing complex Alterlaa. Photo by Nick Night on Unsplash

Hundertwasserhaus

Hundertwasserhaus is one of the artist and architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser most famous architectural creations.

The apartment building is also part of Vienna’s social housing program, holds 52 individual apartments and was designed to provide affordable housing to city residents.

The building is well known for its lively colours, playful shapes, and integration of vegetation into its structure, with more than 200 trees and plants placed on the balconies and roof terraces.

As a visitor, you can only view the building from the outside. However, on the opposite side of the building, you will find Hundertwasser Village, which includes a shopping centre created by Hundertwasser, with a bar and some souvenir shops in typical Hundertwasser style.

Hundertwasser’s style is easily recognisable. Lively colours, playfulness, irregular shapes and connections to nature characterise it. Photo by Nick Night on Unsplash

READ MORE: Hundertwasser: Who is Austria’s ‘quirky’ architect and where is his work?

Metzleinstalerhof

Metzleinstalerhof is a well-known social housing complex in Margareten, built in the early 1920s.

It is one of the large-scale public housing projects planned by the Social Democrats as an attempt to improve the living conditions of the working class.

Here the residents can enjoy a central swimming pool, a kindergarten, a library, and many common rooms.

The complex was designed by architect Heinrich Schmid and is made up of buildings arranged around courtyards. The complex also offers laundry rooms and gardens.

The many shared spaces were designed to help residents connect and create a sense of community. The idea was to provide not just affordable homes but also a better quality of life and a lively community.

Today, it still serves as a affordable housing complex and remains a symbol of Vienna’s dedication to social welfare.

 
 
 
 
 
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Reumannhof

Next to Metzleinstalerhof, you find Reumannhof, another large social housing complex.

The complex was designed by Hubert Gessner and opened up its door to residents in 1926 offering 460 different apartments. The idea was the same as with Metzleinstelarhof, to create an more comfortable living situation for the working-class where they can also experience a sense o community.

The building offers its residents courtyards, common spaces such as gardens, laundry rooms, sport halls and other facilities.

 
 
 
 
 
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READ NEXT: Gemeindebau: How do you qualify for a social housing flat in Vienna?

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RENTING

What tenants in Austria need to know about getting their rent reduced

From construction noise to broken utilities, various issues can allow tenants in Austria to request a rent reduction. Learn the steps to follow and when legal action might be necessary.

Published: 19 September 2024 15:02 CEST
What tenants in Austria need to know about getting their rent reduced

In Austria, tenants can legally request rent reductions if their rental property’s usability is significantly impaired. 

According to MieterHilfe, the association that helps renters in Vienna, Section 1096 of the Austrian Civil Code (ABGB) regulates this. The ABGB covers rental agreements for all properties. 

The law offers protection when tenants experience issues like heavy construction noise or utility outages (such as gas, electricity, or water). However, knowing when and how to apply for a rent reduction and understanding the process can be tricky. Disputes often end up in court and are decided on a case-by-case basis.

READ ALSO: Can my landlord in Austria increase the rent whenever they want?

When you can ask for a rent reduction

If your rental property’s usability is restricted, you can apply for a rent reduction. Common examples of restricted usability often include disruptions in gas, electricity, or water supplies, major construction noise from remodelling, damage to property that prevents proper use, such as a broken heating system, and more. 

Importantly, tenants can claim a rent reduction even if the landlord is not directly responsible for the impairment. However, the extent of the usability issue must be clear, and the tenant must notify the landlord to allow them to fix the problem. Additionally, if a tenant repairs the issue, the rent reduction period ends as soon as the repair is made.

Not all impairments qualify for a rent reduction, though. For example, minor inconveniences or defects, issues that the tenant was aware of when signing the lease, impairments caused by the tenant’s actions and situations where the tenant has already waived the right to a reduction do not count.

An attic room can get extremely hot without air conditioning (Photo by Jakub Żerdzicki on Unsplash)

If there is a dispute, the court will decide the extent of the rent reduction, considering objective and subjective factors. For example, households with small children or pregnant women might receive higher reductions.

READ ALSO: Tenant or landlord: Who pays which costs in Austria?

MieterHilfe has a table with many recent cases that can give you an idea of the causes of rent reduction and the amount tenants received. For example, in one case in Vienna, the flat had significant mould infestation, and the tenants received a 75 percent rental reduction. In another case, rent was reduced by 30 percent because of “unhealthy odours” from the rubbish room that affected half of the flat.

In one case, dangerous electrical cables were accessible inside the flat, and the tenant did not have to pay any rent until the issue was fixed.

Things get more complicated when it comes to noise. In one case in 2005, the tenant got a 15 percent rent reduction due to the consequences (noise and smell nuisance) of a garage construction in the neighbouring property, but not a reduction when the next-door property was doing “normal construction work.”

Another common complaint tenants have is regarding heat, especially in Dachgeschoss apartments (attic apartments), which can get extremely hot due to the lack of ventilation and their location in buildings. In one case, the air conditioning system was positioned so unfavourably that the rooms were not cooled —the tenant got a 6 percent reduction in rent.

In another, though, the complaint regarding excessive heating was dismissed, and the tenant received no reduction because they had rented the room without any reservation or questioning, even though the place had no sun protection or air conditioning.

READ ALSO: What happens when my rental contract expires in Austria?

Legal action and rent payment strategies

Tenants must be cautious when pursuing rent reductions, the renter’s association say. Two approaches are commonly used.

You can continue paying the total rent while negotiating. The tenant informs the landlord about the issue and continues paying the total rent but reserves the right to claim a reduction later. This can be useful in avoiding eviction risks.

Or, they can reduce rent directly. This means the tenant pays a reduced amount but informs the landlord in writing. If the landlord disagrees, they may take legal action, and the court will decide the appropriate – if any – reduction.

In both cases, it is essential to notify the landlord in a verifiable form, such as a registered letter, to ensure the process is documented.

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