The EU faces a severe housing crisis driven by rising rents, unaffordable real estate prices, and wages lagging behind inflation.  To remedy the market failure in the housing sector, the EESC demands urgent action and calls for a sound EU housing strategy, writes Thomas Kattnig, rapporteur of the EESC opinion Social housing in the EU - decent, sustainable and affordable.

By Thomas Kattnig

Rising rents, soaring real estate prices and salaries that are not keeping up with inflation are making housing unaffordable for a growing number of people. The housing crisis in the EU is real.

This is leading to higher healthcare costs, productivity losses, environmental damage and negative economic consequences due to reduced purchasing power.

The EESC, as the voice of organised civil society, believes that urgent action must be taken to remedy the market failure in the housing sector. Therefore, we call on the Commission to work with the Parliament, Member States and civil society to put together a comprehensive package of EU measures establishing framework conditions and the right to housing, in line with the European Pillar of Social Rights and the Charter of Fundamental Rights.

We therefore welcome the appointment of a Commissioner for Energy and Housing and the announcement that a European Affordable Housing Plan will be put forward within the next 100 days. We need, among other things, an EU-wide transparency register for real estate transactions, more streamlined coordination, more efficient permitting procedures, better land-use planning, affordable land for social housing, more investment in renovation and climate-friendly construction, and the Housing First programme so as to give homeless people security and prospects once more. We call for housing to be recognised as a fundamental right and not a commodity, by enshrining it in EU primary law.

At the same time, we agree with the Letta report that access to social housing needs to be more broadly defined in State aid law.

Moreover, the EESC calls for a significant increase in financial support for social housing. Firstly, public investment in social housing must be excluded from the Stability and Growth Pact’s debt rules. Secondly, non-profit property developers and cooperatives, as well as municipalities, should be able to obtain long-term, interest-free loans through the planned investment platform or directly from the European Investment Bank.

Short-term rentals, which are a problem in many major European cities, further reduce the amount of housing available. To get to grips with this phenomenon, we need a toolbox at EU level with various tools, such as vacant property taxes and rent caps, so that Member States can take appropriate action.

Particular attention must also be paid a) to meeting the housing needs of young people through targeted programmes such as Housing First for Youth (HF4Y) and b) to including people with disabilities.

To ensure that housing is not only affordable but also sustainable, renovations and retrofits should be prioritised over new builds. To facilitate such renovations, we call for a combination of mandatory and supporting measures to ensure that fair climate action is taken. Funding tools are needed to enable everyone to carry out thermal and energy renovations, regardless of their financial situation. At the same time, obligations must be laid down for property owners, in particular landlords, to protect tenants from excessive rent increases due to landlords passing on costs.

Finally, we stress that the housing crisis not only adversely affects European citizens’ quality of life, but also threatens the smooth running of the EU internal market. An EU housing strategy is therefore needed to increase the housing supply, introduce measures to reduce construction costs, help upskill the workforce, increase productivity and improve the environmental performance of the construction industry.

The 9th European Migration Forum (EMF), organised by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs, focused on how civil society can play a key role in the forthcoming implementation of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, while highlighting the direct work of civil society organisations on the ground.

The EMF, held in Brussels in late November, shone the spotlight on the Pact on Migration and Asylum, which entered into force in June 2024. Participants explored its forthcoming implementation and how civil society can help support and apply the pact humanely. The event also took a closer look at the new permanent solidarity mechanism, creating closer links between asylum and return procedures, adequate reception conditions and the Action Plan on Integration and Inclusion 2021-2027.

Kicking off the opening session, the outgoing European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, said: ‘I am glad that one of my last public duties as Commissioner will be to speak at the European Migration Forum, a vital platform for civil society organisations, EU Member States and policy-makers to address challenges and opportunities related to migration management. Our discussions over the years have always been inspiring. Together, we can build stronger, more resilient communities, upholding our values and ensuring that Europe remains a place of refuge and opportunity.’

The EESC President, Oliver Röpke, thanked Commissioner Johansson for her dedication to reforming EU migration policy. ‘We must ensure that the migration pact is implemented in the most humane and sustainable way possible and the only way we can do this is by listening to civil society organisations on the ground. Although the pact has been adopted, the work is far from over – in fact, one could say the real work starts now,’ he warned.

The EMF was established in 2015 as a platform for dialogue between civil society, institutions and authorities on issues relating to migration and the integration of third-country nationals. It meets once a year to discuss the latest policy developments and to gather and exchange information on how European policies are implemented at regional, local and grass-roots levels.

Each year, the forum focuses on a different theme, which is chosen on the basis of input provided by civil society organisations during consultation processes undertaken in the months leading up to the event. It has so far covered topics such as safe migration routes, migrants’ access to rights and services and to the EU, a more inclusive European labour market for migrants and the role of young people.

The EESC has already adopted key opinions on major themes relating to migration and asylum, including on the setup of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, on asylum and migration regulation, on the Security Union package/Schengen package, and on the Action plan on integration and inclusion 2021-2027. The EESC also set up a permanent group on immigration and integration in 2009, which helps give tangible form to the EESC’s role as a facilitator between civil society and the EU institutions on migration issues, while striving to promote the development of a common European immigration and integration policy. (lm)