Localizing Housing Finance - Connecting Cities, Communities and Investment

The global housing crisis is intensifying, with its impacts most acutely felt in cities and among youth and vulnerable populations. Affordability gaps, land and infrastructure constraints, regulatory barriers, limited social housing supply, and speculative investment dynamics are placing growing pressure on local housing systems. While these challenges are global in nature, their impacts are territorial, requiring locally driven responses that advance SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities). This session aims to translate global housing commitments into local action by mobilizing partnerships and finance for inclusive, resilient, and affordable housing, in line with SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals). It highlights the central role of local and regional governments, multilateral development banks, international organizations, and decentralized cooperation in localizing housing finance and reducing regional disparities. The focus is on expanding financial instruments, strengthening institutional capacities, and fostering cooperation pathways that enable subnational authorities to plan, finance, and scale affordable and climate-resilient housing. The event convenes regional and local governments, multilateral development banks, OECD, UN-Habitat’s 2030 Cities Coalition, UCLG, civil society actors, and partner cities and regions from Europe and Latin America. This multilevel and multi-stakeholder setting connects evidence-based policy, municipal practice, peer learning, and capital mobilization, showcasing concrete territorial experiences and financing approaches, with particular attention to solutions addressing youth and vulnerable populations. The session will focus on knowledge exchange around regulatory, fiscal, and financial innovations for inclusive and resilient housing; decentralized cooperation and peer learning to adapt and transfer effective territorial approaches; localization of finance through subnational windows, blended finance, guarantees, and simplified access mechanisms; and scalable housing solutions responding to affordability, inclusion, and climate challenges. Expected outcomes include agenda on localizing housing finance with pathways for subnational access to capital; strengthened partnerships among local governments, development banks, civil society, and private actors; and replicable practices across European and Latin American territories. The session contributes to SDGs 10, 11, and 17.