Andorran Architects Launch L’Estaló to Promote Affordable Cooperative Housing

Architects Andrea Doncel and Lluís Ginjaume presented L’Estaló, their new association to promote cooperative housing, at a public event in Andorra la Vella’s Sala Ària on Thursday. The group aims to support projects, advise administrations, and connect citizens with stakeholders to develop non-speculative alternatives amid high property prices and rental shortages.

L’Estaló, accessible at estalo.ad and formed by architects but open to other professionals, will publicize the model’s benefits, guide interested groups, and identify underused land or buildings for cooperatives. It plans to assist in crafting regulations and public-private partnerships. The founders, working on the initiative since 2023, stressed Andorra’s need for such options, noting ongoing discussions with officials and growing bank interest in social housing models.

In the cooperative system, the group owns the building, providing members indefinite usage rights without selling or renting units. Land would be ceded long-term by public bodies, parroquial authorities, or private owners—similar to Pas de la Casa’s emfitèutic census, which grants usage and development for 70 to 99 years in exchange for an annual fee. At term’s end, assets could revert for affordable public stock.

To illustrate viability, L’Estaló shared a simulation for a 45-unit development on ceded public land, with total costs near €13 million. Without subsidies, a one-bedroom (55 sqm) requires a €40,160 initial contribution (typically 20% of costs, recoverable on exit) and €896 monthly; two-bedroom (77 sqm): €56,220 and €1,255; three-bedroom (98 sqm): €71,550 and €1,597. Government aid for first-time buyers halves the upfront amount and cuts fees by about 14%, yielding €20,080 and €774 for one-bedroom. A more generous subsidy drops it to €16,730 initial and €670 monthly—the most favorable scenario. These equate to €12-16 per sqm, below current rental averages of €18.8-26.9 per sqm.

Ginjaume called it a “win-win” for residents and landowners, emphasizing collective decisions, shared spaces like communal kitchens and green roofs, and zero speculation. Examples include Zurich cooperatives (Holderhof, Kalkbreite) covering over 20% of housing, Catalonia’s 69 projects with 1,213 homes for 791 people—such as 1962’s Cooperativa Obrera de Viviendas del Prat and Barcelona’s La Borda, where residents say “my flat is the whole building”—and broader successes in Nordic countries, France (157 cooperatives), and Spain (84).

Political parties Desperta Laurèdia and Partit Socialdemòcrata have mentioned the approach. No sites are yet mobilized, but interest exists from motivated individuals. The name references a key pillar in Pyrenean architecture.