There was standing room only in the European Parliament’s fourth-floor meeting room this week as policymakers, housing experts, and advocates from across the continent gathered for the launch of Housing Europe’s State of Housing in the EU 2025: Trends in a Nutshell. The event, hosted by Irish MEP Ciaran Mullooly, Vice-Chair of the Parliament’s Special Committee on the Housing Crisis, quickly became a barometer of frustration – and determination – among Europe’s housing policymakers.
The tone was unmistakable: Europe is no longer simply talking about a housing crisis—it is living one. And as the data presented in Housing Europe’s latest report shows, the problem is structural, systemic, and worsening.
“Europe is facing a systemic housing emergency,” said Mullooly in his opening remarks. “Housing needs far outstrip supply in almost every member state. Waiting lists for social housing stretch into the millions. National targets are missed year after year—and even where new homes are built, they are too often unaffordable for those who need them most.”
Demand Rising, Delivery Falling
Across the EU, housing output is falling even as demand reaches record highs. France requires more than half a million new homes each year but delivers barely half that figure. Germany needs 400,000 annually, the Netherlands close to a million by 2031 – and yet construction across Europe is forecast to hit a ten-year low in 2025.
In Ireland, where housing policy has dominated political debate for more than a decade, supply continues to lag behind population growth and demographic need. Even where governments have set ambitious annual targets, delivery is constrained by rising construction costs, land scarcity, and higher borrowing rates.
The report, prepared by the Housing Europe Observatory with input from 24 member organisations in 16 countries, paints a picture of a sector under severe pressure. Public, co-operative and social housing providers – who collectively account for up to 30% of all new homes built in some countries– are being squeezed by inflation, limited financing, and uncertain policy environments.
“Rising demand for affordable housing now contrasts sharply with a weakening capacity to deliver new supply,” said Laurent Ghekière, Chair of the Housing Europe Observatory. “Without stable financing, clear regulation, and stronger EU-level support, progress risks becoming fragmented and uneven across Europe.”
From Data to Dialogue
The packed Brussels session reflected a shared sense of urgency. As MEPs, national housing leaders, and EU officials debated the findings, frustration surfaced over the widening gap between political commitments and what is actually being delivered on the ground.
Sorcha Edwards, Secretary General of Housing Europe – and one of the sector’s most consistent advocates for social and cooperative housing – reminded attendees that Europe’s housing systems still rest on an unusually strong foundation.
“Europe retains an important network of not-for-profit, co-operative and public housing organisations—some operating for more than a century – that remain deeply embedded in local economies and communities,” she said. “This is not the case elsewhere in the world. These organisations can be the bedrock of housing systems that serve people, not profit. But their ability to deliver is being steadily eroded.”
Despite these challenges, the report highlights a number of countries – among them Luxembourg, Slovenia, and Portugal – where social and affordable housing delivery is expanding, supported in part by EU recovery funds. Elsewhere, however, progress has stalled or reversed. In Finland, for example, the dismantling of long-standing national housing institutions has raised concerns about system stability, while in France and Austria, changes to rent-setting mechanisms and reduced financing are constraining investment.
Europe at a Crossroads
Housing Europe President Marco Corradi described the crisis as “deep – and not just about buildings.”
“We are at a crossroads,” he said. “We can either invest in social, co-operative and public housing as essential to Europe’s welfare system – or continue to mix housing built for people’s needs with housing built purely for profit. The first choice supports stability and inclusion; the second risks deepening inequality and eroding public trust.”
Corradi called for long-term planning and recognition of housing as part of Europe’s essential infrastructure, “every bit as vital as energy, transport, and digital connectivity.” His remarks drew broad agreement in the room, with several speakers stressing the need for consistency beyond political cycles – a message echoed by Ireland’s Housing Commission Chair, John O’Connor.
“Housing delivery is complex, but some of the solutions are clear,” O’Connor said. “We need to treat housing as a unique priority for social cohesion and economic development. That means long-term continuity – plans that last 10, 15, 20 years, not that change with every government.”
O’Connor drew attention to Ireland’s “accumulated housing deficit” of around 250,000 homes and called for a dedicated emergency strategy to close that gap, including fast-track delivery zones and accelerated affordable-housing provision. “We cannot catch up by simply adding a few thousand extra homes each year,” he warned.
EU as Constraint – or Catalyst?
One of the most animated parts of the debate centred on the European Union’s role. The report characterises the EU as both a barrier and a lifeline for housing providers: fiscal rules and debt classifications often constrain investment, while EU funds and European Investment Bank (EIB) loans are crucial to unlocking delivery.
Stefan Moser, Head of the European Commission’s Housing Task Force, acknowledged this duality.
“Finance is the main concern – and there will never be enough public money alone,” he said. “That’s why innovative financial instruments, combined with clear regulatory frameworks and evidence-based planning, are essential to make housing affordable, sustainable, and decent.”
Moser confirmed that the European Commission’s forthcoming Affordable Housing Plan, expected in December, would seek to align EU funds, EIB lending, and national instruments into a coordinated European financing platform. “Housing must be treated as an enabler of inclusion and competitiveness,” he said, “not as a casualty of fiscal orthodoxy.”
Irish Leadership in a European Context
For Ireland’s Ciaran Mullooly, the debate held particular resonance. “If you cannot live within an area, you cannot participate in society,” he told attendees, drawing on a conversation earlier that day with representatives of the GAA. His focus on the “Right to Stay” – the principle that people should be able to live and build within their own communities – has begun to gain traction both in Ireland and across the EU as part of a wider shift toward socially sustainable development.
Mullooly also confirmed that he intends to table up to 30 amendments to the Parliament’s draft housing crisis report, calling for “further VAT reductions or exemptions for first-time buyers and self-builders, greater decision-making at local authority level, and a more ambitious push for off-site and modern methods of construction.”
From Crisis to Collective Action
As the discussion drew to a close, Edwards reminded delegates that the upcoming EU Affordable Housing Plan represents a unique opportunity to turn data into action.
“We know what works. We know what is needed,” she said. “Now is the time to choose long-term solutions that support people – not profit.”
If the standing-room-only crowd and the passionate exchanges in Brussels are any indication, Europe’s housing debate has entered a new phase – one less about diagnosing the crisis, and more about mobilising to fix it.
