Brasil to build 350K low-cost housing units | World News |Axisoflogic.com

The announcement to expand the country's housing initiative comes just one month before the national elections.

Brazil plans to expand its low-income housing program known as “My House My Life” and build another 350,000 homes by 2015, said Finance Minister Guido Mantega on Wednesday.

Mantega also announced that the government would extend a current tax exemption on the construction of houses under US$42,400 (100,000 Brazilian reais) for an extra four-years.

The announcements pleased the local construction industry, which is due to see a major increase in productivity, only one month before the country's national elections. The industry warned of major layoffs if more contracts for 2015 were not announced.

But the move is also part of a major initiative by current President Dilma Rousseff – who is also running for reelection this year – to address the massive homeless population in the country.

The government plans to build 200,000 housing units by the end of this year and an additional 150,000 in the first six months of 2015, to reach their final goal of 3.1 million homes for the “My House, My Life” initiative.

Rousseff has undertaken many policy initiative aimed at reducing poverty and social inequality during her time in office, which has appeared as one of her government's major achievements and something that sets her apart from her main political rival Marina Silva of the Green Party whose main focus has been the environment and establishing market-friendly policies.

According to a recent report by the Ministry of Cities, Brazil is facing a shortage of at least five million homes.

Guilherme Boulous from the National Coordination of the Homeless Workers' Movement said that addressing the housing situation in the country will take more than just building homes, but should also include the challenge faced by property speculation. Evidence shows that the housing situation deteriorates as rents rise and no social assistance is available to make up the difference.

"It's a barrel of gunpowder that was bound to explode one day," said Boulous. "Over the last five years, the rise in property prices exceeded 130 percent in the city of Sao Paulo and 200 percent in Rio de Janeiro," he said, adding that there is no social assistance for those who have to pay the rent.

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