Govt signs agreement for affordable housing units in Strovolos

The government on Monday announced the signing of a contract worth €12 million for the construction of 54 affordable two-bedroom apartments in the Nicosia suburb of Strovolos.

The agreement was signed by the interior ministry and the Cyprus land development corporation (Koag), with the apartments, once constructed, set to be made available to those eligible to benefit from Koag’s affordable rental scheme.

The government said the project is “part of the state’s comprehensive housing policy, and specifically the pillar of increasing the housing stock, with a particular focus on the production of affordable housing”.

“The aim is to further financially support Koag, so that, on the one hand, it can implement its development plan, and, on the other hand, implement additional projects, which will contribute to alleviating the housing problem, which is most acutely faced by low- and middle-income households,” the government said.

To be eligible for the affordable rental scheme, beneficiaries must be citizens of the Republic of Cyprus or citizens of other European Union member states who have lived in Cyprus for five continuous years prior to their application.

Applicants must earn less than prescribed amounts per year, with applicants living alone required to earn less than €25,000 gross per year, and couples or single-parent families required to earn less than €45,000 gross per year combined.

Three-person families are required to earn less than €50,000 gross per year combined, four-person families are required to earn less than €55,000 gross per year combined, and families comprising five or more people are required to earn less than €65,000 gross per year combined.

Applicants’ spouses cannot have had another residence suitable for housing their family within the five years prior to the filing of their application, while applicants must also demonstrate sufficient financial resources to be able to pay their monthly rent.

The government on Monday said that since President Nikos Christodoulides came to power in 2023, his government has “reactivated Koag” and “assigned the organisation an upgraded role”.

To this end, it made reference to a similar project worth €16m which is seeing new affordable housing units being constructed in the Limassol suburb of Ayios Nikolaos, while it said that the construction of 181 affordable housing units commenced in 2025.