Housing and Property Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro

Former Yugoslav socialist countries acknowledged the social impact of housing. Prioritising collective rights over individual ones, they considered housing and property as a social good rather than an economic factor. The right to adequate housing as an economic human right was emphasised while less importance was given to the right to property as a civil human right. Since the realisation of economic and social rights through a guaranteed level of economic and social security for all citizens served as a basis to legitimate the socialist regime, the housing legislation and policies of former Yugoslavia explicitly acknowledged and confirmed the social aspect of housing. \n\nThis research intends to examine the property and housing laws, policies and practices in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro. Based on the housing legislation of former Yugoslavia, it reviews the adoption of laws during the war period and their subsequent amendments and replacements in the post-war era. The research focuses on the human rights dimension and reviews the conformity of the applicable domestic laws and policies and their implementation with international human rights standard as set forth in the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms or the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. It gives special attention to the housing situation of women and minority groups, especially the Roma community.