Access to housing is one of the main concerns of Europeans today. That is why the European government team is focusing its interest and efforts on addressing the need for affordable housing solutions by implementing a set of measures and recommendations contained in the European Affordable Housing Plan.
This document is just three months old, having been published on December 16, and is notable for having been co-created by organizations linked to the European Commission and companies, associations, and citizens of the Member States, which guarantees one of the pillars of the NEB initiative: inclusion and active participation.
According to the latest data analyzed, and thanks to a comparative study between 2013 and 2024, housing prices have increased by 60%, growing faster than household incomes. Similarly, average rents have risen by 20%. All this has happened at the same time as residential building permits have fallen by around 20% since 2021.
To address this situation, the Commission proposes a roadmap based on four main pillars. The first seeks to increase the supply of housing, promoting not only construction but also the renovation of affordable housing, given that 20% of available residences are unoccupied.
The second aims to mobilize public and private investment by facilitating financing and new European platforms that connect projects promoted by cities, private developers, and cooperatives with investors. The EC also understands the need to make state housing rules and policies more flexible, bearing in mind that this remains primarily the responsibility of the Member States.
That is why the new plan aims to coordinate European actions and resources to facilitate common solutions to a crisis that is affecting more and more cities and regions across the continent. Moreover, this is the theme of the third axis: the implementation of immediate support measures to make it easier for governments to invest in social housing.
In this way, the European government seeks to promote the construction of 650,000 additional homes per year, reducing bureaucracy and streamlining permits.
Finally, the European Affordable Housing Plan includes initiatives to protect the groups most affected by the crisis, such as young people, students, essential workers, and people at risk of residential exclusion, in an effort to ensure that they have access to decent and affordable housing in the coming years.
Implementation and future meetings
To continue working on these four areas and the rest of the proposals, a number of important events are planned for 2026. The first is a housing summit where experts, policymakers, and stakeholders will come together to share ideas, stimulate debate, and establish practical solutions to housing challenges across the EU.
There will also be meetings for members of the Housing Alliance, which will facilitate the exchange of successful strategies and collaborative solutions for the implementation of policies aligned with the new international plan between cities and regions, state governments, private entities, and citizen organizations.
It will also be very useful to attend the final version of the Commission’s Proposal for a Recommendation on the New European Bauhaus, which seeks to support the plan by putting the values, principles, and potential of the NEB initiative at the service of its objectives.
