Ask Wire CEO highlights structural barriers to affordable housing in Cyprus

At the recent PropTech Connect conference in London, Pavlos Loizou, CEO of Ask Wire, addressed the persistent housing crisis in Cyprus. He argued that the problem is not merely a lack of land or financial resources, but a complex combination of high construction and financing costs, slow bureaucratic permitting processes, limited delivery capacity, and the underutilization of existing building stock.

Loizou proposed a shift in strategy, suggesting that the state should move beyond simply subsidizing new construction, which often leads to the sale of assets and a return to shortages. Instead, he advocated for mapping and repurposing vacant homes, unfinished developments, and unused public buildings through renovation and energy upgrades. This approach would allow for faster housing delivery, lower operational costs, and the revitalization of existing urban infrastructure.

The discussion highlighted the absence of a permanent public housing model in Cyprus. The core recommendation is that government policy must prioritize creating a sustainable public building stock rather than short-term subsidies, ensuring that state investments result in long-term housing solutions that remain within the public sphere to address recurring shortages.