Housing Europe

Housing is at a tipping point, and voices are becoming louder and louder. Knowledge, tried policies, values, and innovation must cut through the noise and reach policymakers, especially when it comes to an essential right–housing. This is what we have been working on at Housing Europe for almost a year. On our brand new website, we are showing the human face of the public, cooperative, and social housing sector, but also the wealth of knowledge that we receive from 43,000 committed organisations in 31 European countries. Insights about the sector, policy opinion based on facts and growndwork, some of the most quoted reports on housing, best practices, innovation, articles, events, podcasts, a monthly newsletter read by 1,500 subscribers - all in one spot. Who helped us to make this happen? karma.agency and Juliette Moyart turned that long list of wishes into reality. Christophe Drèze, General Manager of Karma: “Housing Europe is a prime example of the type of projects karma.agency specialises in – collaborating with organisations within the European sphere who have a positive impact on people and the planet. Organisations like this deserve a louder voice and a brighter spotlight – which is exactly what the new housingeurope.eu delivers." Same web address, but the sector shines brighter. Take a look. https://lnkd.in/gkE72Nf

Read Housing Europe's February newsletter and stay ahead of the curve on critical developments. 🚩 At an IMCO hearing, we stressed the need to support Europe’s unique social housing fabric, and urged that new housing must serve people, not speculation. In discussions with ECON MEPs, our Secretary-General underlined the importance of the European Investment Bank’s role, calling for more than just loans—grants and de-risking measures are essential to support the sector’s long-term viability. ⌛ Crunch time for Europe’s housing investment—next week, the EIB Forum will host the first-ever presentation of the Pan-European Housing Investment Platform. Housing Europe President Bent Madsen will showcase how the initiative can scale up proven solutions with EU and national backing. He’ll join top figures like EIB President Nadia Calviño, Commissioner Dan Jørgensen, and EP Housing Chair Irene Tinagli to push for coordinated action. 🥳 330 event ideas for ISHF - International Social Housing Festival are already giving us major FOMO. 80+ housing projects in Europe are also competing for 6 European Responsible Housing Awards. 🎧 Two podcasts with current and former MEPs in which we return to a crucial question: how can we achieve a fair energy transition while ensuring access to affordable, sustainable housing? & much more. https://lnkd.in/ebbjzEx3

Today, we echo the words of Mario Nava from the European Commission’s Directorate for Employment, Social Affairs, and Inclusion: Housing is not just a market problem, but also a social one, with direct consequences on labour mobility, demography, and the ability to become independent. This is why we advocate for the European Commission’s Housing Taskforce, with key priorities outlined by Matthew Baldwin, Deputy Director-General of DG ENER: ✔️ State aid ✔️ Investment and funding ✔️ Speculation & financialisation ✔️ Short-term rentals 🚩 Yet, one crucial element must come across more in the conversation: strong conditionality. While we hear institutional banks highlighting the "Prodi dilemma"—the challenge of aggregating small-scale social infrastructure projects to attract investment—the question remains: how do we ensure that financing truly serves those in need, preventing financialisation and speculation in the long-term? At Housing Europe, we believe that investment must come with safeguards to keep social and affordable housing accessible for decades. And we know that this is possible because it is already being done. 🔹 Denmark’s National Building Fund: A proven model for long-term social and affordable housing investment At an event by the European Policy Centre, our President, Bent Madsen, highlighted how Denmark has successfully ensured stability in its social and affordable housing sector for over 50 years through the National Building Fund (Landsbyggefonden). ✅ Self-financing instead of market-driven cycles Unlike many housing investment schemes that fluctuate with economic cycles, the Danish model ensures stable, long-term financing. The Fund prevents pro-cyclical investments—where housing supply peaks in good times but collapses during downturns—by maintaining consistent funding for renovation and construction. ✅ Tenant-funded, solidarity-based The National Building Fund is not financed by public money but by tenants themselves. Established in 1967 through a broad political agreement, the Fund collects compulsory contributions from tenants in social and affordable housing. Once the mortgage loans used to finance the initial construction of housing estates are repaid, those repayments are reinvested into the sector, creating a circular funding mechanism that ensures ongoing financial sustainability. ✅ Supporting affordable rents and strong communities The Fund finances: 🔹 New social and affordable housing construction 🔹 Renovation and energy efficiency improvements 🔹 Accessibility upgrades for elderly and disabled residents 🔹 Social cohesion initiatives, such as employment and education programmes Every 4–6 years, the Danish Parliament sets priorities for the Fund through political agreements, ensuring that investments align with long-term social goals while maintaining financial independence. 🇩🇰 A model to learn from, what’s not to like? Watch the full session of the EPC today - https://lnkd.in/ewyKyUUd

An easy riddle: What unites Europe's most attractive cities? 👊 They are all hit by a shortage of affordable homes and struggle to provide enough housing for people with tight incomes. Last week, the mayors of Amsterdam, Athens, Barcelona, Bologna, Budapest, Ghent, Leipzig, Paris, Rome, Warsaw, as well as Lisbon and Lyon took action, proving they can’t stand still. Meeting with EU Commissioner Jørgensen and the Chair of the European Parliament’s new housing committee, the mayors called for increased EU investment in affordable and social housing. They are demanding the creation of a dedicated EU fund, the reallocation of unspent recovery funds, and reforms to State Aid rules and the Stability and Growth Pact to allow for greater public investment. 🔗 Eurocities has the details: https://lnkd.in/eifwjudd

As the EU shapes its new investment platform for housing, we must resist the temptation of a simplistic ‘supply and demand’ approach and reinforce the value of well-resourced public, social, cooperative, and community-led housing. After meeting MEPs from the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee, Housing Europe's Secretary-General continued discussions with members of ECON, the MEPs who are responsible for economic and monetary affairs. The focus was entirely on the role of the European Investment Bank (EIB) in supporting housing. What did we stress ❓ 🚩 EIB financing is crucial, but loans alone are not enough. With long waiting lists and shrinking public support, the public, cooperative, and social housing sector must be able to rely not only on loans but also on grants, project aggregation, reinforced intermediate funds, and de-risking measures to ensure real impact. 🚩 The EIB’s commitment to doubling its housing investment is a welcome step, but as our Secretary-General Sorcha Edwards highlighted, it must serve a long-term, holistic approach—one that ensures affordability, prevents homelessness, supports ageing in place, and aligns with climate goals. 🚩 Crucially, the people delivering housing projects must be heard. The real challenge is not just financing but ensuring that support reaches those who need it most.

As Europe moves towards a fair energy transition, ensuring access to affordable, sustainable housing has never been more urgent. With the first-ever EU Commissioner for Housing, a dedicated Task Force within the European Commission, and the upcoming Affordable Housing Plan, housing policy is taking centre stage in Brussels. In Housing Europe's first podcast episode for 2025, we’re returning to a crucial question straight from the European Parliament: how can we achieve a fair energy transition while ensuring access to affordable, sustainable housing? This episode explores the intersection of housing and climate policies, examining how initiatives like Fit for 55 and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive impact low-income households. Our guests, MEP Brigitte van der Berg from Renew Europe, a leading voice in the European Parliament’s Special Committee on the Housing Crisis, and Julien DIJOL, Policy Director at Housing Europe, share insights on the financial and regulatory solutions needed to scale up just housing across Europe. One key example is syn_ikiaEU, an EU-funded project aimed at developing plus-energy neighbourhoods, predominantly in social housing—communities that generate more renewable energy than they consume. 🎧 Enjoy listening! https://lnkd.in/e2CtwBsb

All eyes will be on Germany this weekend. 🗳️ Truthout reporter, Marianne Dhenin reached out to Housing Europe to discuss a paradoxical trend that should serve as a wake-up call. Rising housing costs have become fertile ground for political opportunism. While far-right forces have capitalised on cost-of-living fears, they rarely offer concrete solutions to address the crisis. Opposition parties must act boldly to deliver public, cooperative, and social housing solutions—otherwise, they will continue leaving the field open for those who exploit the crisis without solving it. It’s time to take back control of the housing agenda—with real investment, regulation that curbs speculation, and a commitment to ensuring housing as a right, not a privilege. https://lnkd.in/eVxvYP4d

To our incredible ISHF - International Social Housing Festival community—long-standing allies and new friends—you have truly outdone yourselves. 🇦🇲 🇦🇹 🇦🇺 🇧🇪 🇧🇷 🇨🇦 🇨🇴 🇭🇷 🇨🇿 🇧🇻 🇪🇪 🇫🇷 🇩🇪 🇬🇷 🇭🇺 🇮🇸 🇮🇳 🇮🇷 🇮🇪 🇮🇹 🇱🇺 🇳🇱 🇳🇿 🇵🇱 🇵🇹 🇸🇰 🇸🇮 🇪🇸 🇸🇪 🇨🇭 🇹🇼 🇹🇷 🇺🇦 🇬🇧 🇺🇸 Experts and organisations from 35 countries, spanning 5 continents, are coming together in Ireland to co-create fair housing solutions. They will bring bold ideas on how homes can adapt to a changing climate, showcase the social value of housing, rethink how we house young people and the elderly, tackle homelessness, drive decarbonisation through circularity and innovation and a lot more—all while keeping livability at the centre. This week, our member and Festival host, the Irish Council for Social Housing, travelled to Brussels to explore synergies within the record-breaking 👏 339 proposals for seminars, workshops, study visits, and cultural and artistic sessions. A lot of work still lies ahead, but one thing is certain: the 5th edition of the International Social Housing Festival (4-6 June, Dublin) will be an antidote to the status quo.

Proud of our Research Coordinator, Dara Turnbull, for being recognised as one of the top 25 thinkers by the Local Government Information Unit (LGIU) which supports local councils in the UK, Ireland, and Australia in delivering for their communities. Dara’s critical analysis of housing systems, through the work of our Housing Europe Observatory, has earned him this well-deserved place on the list. The knowledge is out there—we just need to dig deeper. Explore our research: https://lnkd.in/eczDMzEn

Housing Europe is joining a series of key debates with Members of the European Parliament, starting with how to move beyond speculation and ensure long-term housing affordability. At today's Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) Committee hearing on housing rentals, our Secretary General, Sorcha Edwards, stressed the urgent need to strengthen consumer protections against predatory investment practices and shift investment towards public, cooperative, and social housing. Europe’s not-for-profit housing sector is a unique and essential pillar of affordability—one that must be reinforced, not eroded. Discussions still default to simplistic solutions: build more, fund more. However, Europe’s housing crisis isn’t just about supply—it’s about who controls housing, for what purpose, and whether homes remain affordable in the long term. Without tackling financialisation, new developments risk becoming assets for speculation rather than places to live. Housing Europe called on MEPs to scale up district-level decarbonisation. We have seen that decoupling climate policy from housing affordability is a dangerous path. The Affordable Housing Initiative European Partnership, our joint effort with the European Commission, demonstrates how sustainability and affordability can go hand in hand. Finally, the EU’s economic governance must go beyond price signals. Housing affordability and exclusion indicators should be integrated into the EU Semester and monitored as part of Europe’s key economic review process. Member States need the right signals to prioritise long-term, stable housing solutions. 🔗 Check out our key recommendations in Housing Europe’s 20 Asks for the EU https://lnkd.in/dV7bV-nr