The document summarizes the key findings of the 2017 report "The State of Housing in the EU" published by Housing Europe. It finds that while economic growth has returned to Europe, inequality is increasing and many are being left behind. Housing markets are recovering but prices are growing faster than incomes in most countries. The crisis exacerbated housing exclusion and homelessness, while policy responses have been largely inadequate. Cities are developing innovative solutions to address affordable housing challenges with limited national support.

1. The State of Housing in the EU
2017
Alice.pittini@housingeurope.eu

2. Network of national and regional housing provider
federations
• 4,500 public, voluntary housing organisations
• 28,000 cooperative housing organisations
45 members in 24 countries (20 EU Member States)
Manage 26 million dwellings, about 11% of existing
dwellings in the EU
About us in brief

3. Our Vision, our guide
• We, not-for-profit, public and co-
operatives housing providers,
have a vision of a Europe which
provides access to decent and
affordable housing for all in
communities which are socially,
economically and environmentally
sustainable and where all are
enabled to reach their full potential.
• We provide housing for socially
sustainable neighborhoods.

4. Structure
• It is organized in five (5) thematic Working Committees open to all members
Housing Europe
Observatory (Research)
Urban Affairs
Social Affairs
Financial Affairs
Energy &
Construction

6. Advocacy
Through the constant monitoring of the work of
the EU in the field of housing and related
advocacy work, being heard at the top level by
developing a positive message to EU leaders.
Capacity Building
Conferences, workshops, study visits, exchange
of good practices, toolkits, e.g. Housing for All
campaign #housing4all, funding opportunities
etc…
Research
Research briefings, social housing country
profiles, reports, toolkits. The observatory
identifies and analyses key trends and research
needs in the field of housing and social housing at
European level
Our added value

7. Biennial compass of Europe's housing sector
• Second edition
• Covering 28 EU
countries
• Source: network of
national experts,
existing databases and
literature
• Bringing together
trends/figures and
policy

8. What’s in the report
• Housing markets in the European Union
• Affordability of housing: a new stake for the
Union
• Local housing markets of the Union: increasing
diversity and mobility
• Housing as a tool to implement objectives and
policies of the Union
• Member states profiles of the housing sector

9. Key messages
• Growth has returned to our continent, but we
should not forget this growth is leaving many
behind and our societies are increasingly
unequal. Similarly, the recent ‘recovery’ in
housing markets is far from benefitting
everyone and the state of housing in the
European Union today remains critical.

10. Growth recovery means also recovery in house prices,
which are growing faster than income in most EU MS
• Housing markets across the EU have started to speed up
again: 2016 saw the highest annual growth rate in
house prices since 2009.
• Not same trend everywhere: in some countries like the
UK or Sweden prices are higher than pre-crisis level, in
others like Greece, Portugal and Spain the downward
trend has only marginally slowed down.
• Crisis had a large impact in terms of worsening
households’ economic situation and this means less
capacity to make ends meet even in a context of lower
house prices.

12. Inequality and housing exclusion are mutually
reinforcing
• Housing overburden rate among people at risk of
poverty has increased significantly compared to pre-
crisis level, from 35.9 in 2005 to 39.3 in 2015 (but
slightly decreased for those with higher incomes). Share
of poor households paying too much for housing has
doubled (or more) in Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Greece
• The income gap between tenants and owners is
widening, and the housing cost burden for tenants is
increasing disproportionately in the vast majority of EU
countries

13. 73,2
50,2
26,7
49,8
0,0
20,0
40,0
60,0
80,0
100,0
120,0
Above 60% of median income Below 60% of median income
Distribution of the population by tenure status and income group
EU 28 average, 2015
(Source: Eurostat, SILC)
owners tenants

16. Poor political response to homelessness & housing
exclusion
• Housing exclusion has been exacerbated by the crisis and
policies are failing to provide an adequate response in most
countries.
• Increasing homelessness, Finland being the only country in
the EU which managed to reverse this trend by implementing
effective policies.
• People trying to enter the housing market such as younger
generations and migrants find it increasingly difficult, also
clearly emerging housing problems for working poor

17. Slow recovery of construction
• Residential construction as a share of GDP is currently
just over half than its 2006 level ( from 6 to 3.7%), and
construction is recovering much slower than prices
• Switzerland, Sweden and Norway showing the highest
construction costs followed by DE, FR, NL, AT
• High building standards and requirements are posing a
significant challenge to the provision of social and
affordable housing in a number of countries

18. Increasing territorial divide
• Major cities face a structural housing shortage and
house prices there are higher and raising faster, with
rents following the same trend.
• Finding adequate and affordable housing in places
where job opportunities are is increasingly hard.
• Migration flows are increasing pressure on already
tight housing market areas.
• Shrinking regions show high housing vacancy rates,
abandoned properties and negative equity, as well as
an increased need for services and revitalization of
areas with an increasingly old population.

19. Challenges for housing providers
• Social and affordable housing providers continue to
offer rents significantly lower than the market. They
also provide affordable home ownership and shared
ownership options. However, they are faced with a
double challenge: decreasing income of current
residents, and increasing number of people registered
on waiting lists (1.9 million in FR, 650thousand in IT,
91.8 thousand in IE).
• Responding to the ever growing demand in the context
of increasing building and energy requirements and
decreasing public support is becoming more difficult.

20. Different regional responses
• Countries with a long tradition of social renting
have shown more resilience (e.g. Austria and
France), but there’s a trend towards a more residual
role (e.g. Netherlands).
• Countries with little tradition of social housing (CEE
region) and/or where public finances have been
particularly constrained (e.g. Greece, Ireland, Italy
and Portugal) are struggling to find ways to invest in
supply and maintenance as well as necessary social
measures.

21. Lesson not learnt by housing policy makers
• The crisis could have represented a turning point
showing the importance of investing in affordable, non-
speculative housing. However, overall so far there has
been little change in social housing policies.
• Retreat of the state from housing policies - since the 90s
at least, but in some countries the crisis has exacerbated
this trend by putting a further constraint on public
budgets
• Shift in public spending from housing development to
housing allowances (e.g. the UK)

23. Cities at the forefront
• In this context, increasingly we find
local authorities/cities coming up
with solutions rather than national
policies
• Good lessons to share in use of
land, demanding private developers
to contribute to social
infrastructures, bringing vacant
premises back into use, initiatives
for social inclusion, education and
employment opportunities in poor
neighbourhoods

24. EU Urban Agenda Housing Partnership
• HE leading group on affordable housing
• Policy toolkit on Affordable Housing in Cities
• Currently: 30 examples organized according to 9 themes
goo.gl/tEM92P

25. Measures to increase the availability of social housing
in the city of Paris
Instruments to reach the goal:
• a first purchasing right by the
municipality on properties for
sale
• an obligation at least 30% of
dwellings to social housing in all
projects by private developers
covering over 800 m2
• Financing new construction by
HLM providers or give them
access to land
• One third of the city’s
investment budget is dedicated
to housing

26. Limited Profit Housing Associations (LPHA) in Austria
• Limited-profit housing associations
are enterprises whose activities are
directly geared towards the
fulfilment of the common good in the
field of housing und residential
matters.
• They provide social and affordable
housing with rents covering costs
(below market rents)
• As they are only allowed limited
profit, public funding is needed to
provide investment capital and to
make it affordable to people.
• Control by state authorities and
independent monitoring organisation

27. From empty office to social housing units, the
Netherlands
• Social housing organisations
devise creative solutions in
order to give unoccupied
office buildings a new future
as homes.
• There are tens of thousand of
unoccupied buildings such as
offices, residential and care
complexes throughout the
Netherlands.
• For instance a former office
building in Amsterdam with 12
floors was renovated into
homes for 285 students
The Hub has a built-in kitchen, shower, and toilet, along with heat, a sound system,
and Internet.
Photo: https://www.fastcompany.com/3057889/this-pre-fab-apartment-turns-
empty-offices-into-affordable-housing