Context
This resource is a long-form European Parliament committee discussion hosted on the European Parliament’s official YouTube channel. It features Dan Jørgensen (European Commissioner for Energy and Housing) in an exchange of views with Members of the European Parliament’s special committee on the housing crisis, with references to participation by Raffaele Fitto (Executive Vice President for Cohesion and Reforms). The discussion focuses on the scale of Europe’s housing affordability challenge and on EU-level instruments that can support member states, while linking housing delivery with energy efficiency and wider sustainability objectives.
Scale of the housing crisis
Speakers cite a steep deterioration in affordability over the past 15 years: rents are described as having increased by around a quarter in real terms, while house prices are said to be up by around a half. A key indicator highlighted is that in 2023 around 10% of the EU population spent 40% or more of disposable income on housing and related costs. Homelessness is presented as a Europe-wide emergency, with the latest figures referenced in the discussion estimating nearly 900,000 people without a home each night in Europe.
Social and economic impacts
The discussion frames housing as both a social right and an economic constraint. Affordability problems are described as affecting broad groups, including young people seeking first homes, families facing rising rents and energy costs, and older people requiring adapted housing solutions. Several interventions link housing shortages to labour mobility and competitiveness: when key workers (such as nurses, teachers, firefighters and police officers) cannot afford to live in the cities they serve, this is described as undermining access to jobs, reducing mobility, and weakening overall economic dynamism.
What the EU can do (within shared competences)
While housing policy is repeatedly characterised as primarily a member state responsibility (with major roles for regional and local authorities), the commissioner argues there is “room for Europe at the table.” Existing and planned EU support mentioned includes €21.3 billion from the Recovery and Resilience Facility earmarked for housing reforms and investments, and an intention to double cohesion-policy investment in affordable housing. The Commission also signals work on mobilising public and private capital through a planned pan-European investment platform in cooperation with the European Investment Bank and other financial partners.
Energy efficiency and affordability
A major theme is the need to align decarbonisation and housing affordability. Energy poverty is discussed as a significant issue, with figures cited of roughly 45–47 million people unable to adequately heat their homes in the previous year. The commissioner argues that improving the energy performance of dwellings can lower long-term living costs, but acknowledges the up-front investment burden and stresses that implementation choices by member states are critical to managing social impacts.
Short-term rentals, regulation, and market pressures
MEPs repeatedly raise concerns about the impact of short-term rentals on supply and affordability in high-demand cities and regions. The discussion notes that new EU regulation is expected to increase transparency in this sector as it comes into effect, while the commissioner signals an openness to consider additional measures beyond the newly adopted framework. Related debates also touch on state-aid rules for affordable housing, permitting timelines, financialisation and speculation in housing markets, and the need for targeted approaches for youth, rural areas, islands, and people with specific housing needs.
Next steps and process
The Commission outlines an approach centred on outreach, consultation, and evidence gathering in 2025, including an affordable housing dialogue and a planned youth dialogue on housing. Inputs from cities, regions, and parliamentary work are positioned as feeding into the first European Affordable Housing Plan, while some actions (such as work on cohesion funding, state-aid considerations, and investment-platform design) are described as proceeding in parallel due to the urgency of the crisis.