Resource context
The document “Beyond bandages: Towards a European Affordable Housing Plan that is fair and sustainable” is published by the European Environmental Bureau (EEB). The authors are not named in the resource. It is a joint statement aimed at EU policy makers and stakeholders, arguing that affordability and sustainability must be addressed together in European housing policy.
Scale of the housing and energy crisis
Between 2010 and the first quarter of 2025, EU house prices rose by 57.9% and rents by 27.8%. The statement reports that 17% of Europeans live in overcrowded conditions and around 1.27 million people face homelessness. Housing quality and energy performance are presented as core parts of the crisis: around 70% of homes in Europe are energy-inefficient, and 1 in 10 Europeans is unable to keep their home adequately warm. The building sector is described as the EU’s most environmentally impactful sector, responsible for almost one-third of Europe’s footprint.
What the European Affordable Housing Plan (EAHP) is expected to do
The EAHP is presented as an opportunity to move beyond “bandage” approaches that focus only on increasing construction (“build, build, build”). The statement argues that increasing supply is necessary but insufficient unless the plan also addresses who controls housing and land, the purposes housing serves, and whether homes remain affordable over time. A central concern is financialisation and speculative ownership, which the document links to deepening and prolonging housing crises if not tackled through longer-term structural measures.
Expanding social and non-profit housing as public infrastructure
The statement calls for reinvesting in and expanding public and non-profit social housing as essential public infrastructure that safeguards affordability while delivering high sustainability and social inclusion. It recommends sustained public investment to build, renovate, and acquire quality, energy-efficient homes accessible across income ranges, while prioritising people experiencing homelessness and housing exclusion. It also proposes that social housing expansion should be guided by housing-needs assessments and a human-rights approach to adequate housing, and complemented by faster levers such as mobilising privately owned housing (including requisitions for vacant housing and incentives through social rental agencies).
Regulating markets and supporting non-speculative models
Alongside enlarging social housing stock, the document argues for better regulation of the private rental market and a mix of tenure types. It highlights non-profit and non-speculative approaches (including cooperatives, community-led housing, community land trusts, cost-rental schemes, rent controls, social rental agencies, and measures that deter vacancy or short-term letting). It also recommends strict permanent-affordability conditionalities for public support (subsidies, tax regimes, guarantees) so benefits reach vulnerable groups rather than inflating prices, and calls for financing mechanisms that allow non-profit/community-led models to access long-term, low-interest funding.
Using existing buildings, cutting vacancies, and improving sustainability
The statement stresses making better use of existing space: it reports that 33% of the EU population lives in under-occupied homes and that 47.5 million homes across Europe are vacant. Renovation, adaptation, and retrofit of vacant and underused buildings are presented as ways to provide housing while avoiding new-build material impacts, supporting local employment, and reducing urban sprawl. For sustainability and health, it calls for high-quality, circular, energy-efficient and decarbonised buildings, prioritising worst-performing buildings and protections against “renovictions.” It cites that almost 11% of Europeans were unable to keep their homes adequately warm in 2023 and argues for funding that prioritises households in energy poverty, including up-front support for the poorest households alongside technical, administrative, and social assistance.
Aligning EU policy frameworks with affordability goals
Finally, the statement asks the European Commission to assess how EU rules on market harmonisation, fiscal constraints and competition/state-aid frameworks affect housing affordability. It calls for greater transparency in capital flows and ownership structures to prevent speculative dynamics, and for aligning EU funding streams and broader policy frameworks with the goal of affordable, accessible and adequate housing for all.