By Sandra Parthie, president of the EESC Employers’ Group

Across the EU, housing affordability has reached a critical point. The issue extends far beyond rent or mortgage payments – it is also about rising energy bills, renovation and maintenance costs, accessibility needs and access to essential local services.

But affordable housing is not only a social concern: it has become a major economic threat to EU competitiveness. High housing costs are pushing workers out of some areas and are preventing people from moving, creating barriers to employment and exacerbating labour shortages in key sectors. When people cannot afford to live where jobs are located, regional economies lose vitality.

Rental housing remains indispensable for a large share of the population and continues to offer opportunities for owners. In many Member States, individual savers provide a substantial portion of rental homes, while institutional investors increasingly treat housing as a financial asset. This dual development highlights the need to balance the economic and social functions of housing.

Businesses are ready to be part of the solution. Some employers, for instance, even offer housing for their employees. However, construction costs, material shortages, lengthy permitting procedures and financing conditions have all turned into a challenge.

Affordability constraints are not uniform across the EU, with an urban-rural divide and varying local economic conditions, such as high tourist density and short-term rentals. Hence, there can be no one-size-fits-all solution. Place-based responses that are in line with the subsidiarity principle and the fact that housing is a Member State competence are needed.

At the same time, there are some levers the EU can pull to help address the situation, namely through competition law and its exceptions, such as social welfare law and services of general economic interest. European regulatory requirements on the energy performance of buildings are also contributing to a shortage in the supply of housing units.

With the right commitments, Member States can revitalise supply, strengthen competitiveness and secure affordable housing as a pillar of social and economic stability.