About: housing

Why the EU has a big role to play in tackling the housing crisis

Since housing is a fundamental right guaranteed at EU level, the bloc has to play its part and support cities and countries in tackling the housing crisis, providing affordable, adequate and sustainable housing, writes Kim van Sparrentak. Kim van Sparrentak...

French citizens want better homes. Why are politicians standing in their way?

If it enshrines into its upcoming climate bill mandatory building renovation, France will answer the Citizens’ Convention on Climate’s call for better homes and contribute significantly to the EU’s 55% emission reduction target by 2030, writes Etienne Charbit.

France commits to welcoming more refugees despite ‘reception crisis’

The tragic fire that ravaged the Mória refugee camp in Greece on 9 September has again highlighted the weaknesses of the EU's asylum and immigration policies and a lack of European solidarity. EURACTIV France reports on France's experience of the migration regime.

Housing’s role in Europe’s green transition

What investment could be wiser than one that protects the most vulnerable and contributes to climate change mitigation by decreasing our energy consumption? The Just Transition Fund must recognise housing as a cornerstone of the green transition, argue two leading MEPs and civil society leaders.

‘We are talking about breaking monopolies like Facebook,’ says Barley, who tops SPD’s EU election list

In an interview with our partner DerTagesspiegel, German Justice Minister Katarina Barley explains why she wants digital firms to share their collected data with the public, and to limit the power of companies such as Facebook and Amazon.

Fuel poverty and affordable housing: Connecting the dots

There seems to be rising momentum to connect the dots between energy efficiency, fuel poverty and the EU's broader 2030 objectives, writes Sorcha Edwards.

It’s the housing challenge, Mr Juncker

Despite President Juncker's cheerful speech, actual recovery in the EU cannot be celebrated as long as it is confronted by an alarming housing challenge.

Brussels project shines light on muggy battle for healthy homes

A social housing project in one of Brussels' poorest neighbourhoods aimed to demonstrate that renovation doesn't have to be expensive and brings many other side benefits – a notion that resonates with what policymakers are trying to achieve on the other side of town, from the posher buildings of the EU district.

Cities ask EU to put people first

Cities are ready to step up and play their part in tackling social challenges and ending poverty but they need the resources to do so, writes Laia Ortiz.

Homelessness and housing exclusion have reached crisis levels in EU

With rising homelessness and housing deprivation across the European Union, now, more than ever, is the time for the Juncker Commission to bridge the disconnect with its most vulnerable citizens, writes Chloé Serme-Morin.

It’s time to focus on growth

The most divisive US election in modern history and the uncertainty that it created across the world is over. Now, leaders should turn to the challenge of securing sustainable economic growth, writes William R. Rhodes.

Study: Inadequate and poor housing costs EU €194 billion per year

Poor housing is costing EU economies €194bn every year in healthcare, social services and lost productivity, research has found.

How cities are using the green economy to solve Europe’s employment crisis

Green Week opens today with a focus on greener cities: how can we make our cities more sustainable and liveable, asks Anna Lisa Boni.

A new property bubble in France?

France’s High Council for Financial Stability has warned that the commercial property market may be a bubble about to burst. EURACTIV’s partner La Tribune reports.

Germany faces massive shortfall in refugee housing

Accommodation for asylum seekers is increasingly hard to come by, and the refugees who arrived last year will soon need tens of thousands of additional homes, warned experts. EURACTIV Germany reports.

Utrecht-Leon initiative boosts Nicaraguan city

SPECIAL REPORT / An attractive and colourful new district of León, Nicaragua’s second city, where 20,000 people live, was created thanks to an initiative in cooperation with Utrecht.

European housing crisis: Left out in the cold

Homelessness is on the rise, and people at risk of poverty face growing difficulties in getting and keeping housing, write Ruth Owen and Marc Uhry.

Paris’ ecological footprint in decline

Cleaner transport has helped reduce the ecological footprint of the Île-de-France region over the last decade, but housing and food are two energy intensive sectors where little has changed. Journal de l'Environnement reports. 

Tents in football fields: That is not Europe

Europe needs permanent solutions for the refugee crisis, says Marc Calon. Affordable housing associations across the continent can be the key in addressing the emergency situation, he writes.

Refugee influx tough on German housing market

The growing number of refugees is starting to affect the German housing market. According to a new study, Germany will need to build 400,000 new homes every year. EURACTIV Germany reports.

Successful approaches to energy efficiency in housing show the way

Member States are expected to bring the 2030 Energy & Climate objectives closer to people’s housing needs, next week. Responsibility and innovation, resident empowerment and financial schemes are all parts of the strategic mix, writes Marc Calon.

UK must puncture property bubble, Commission warns

The United Kingdom must curb rapidly rising property prices, particularly in London, and raise taxes rather than just slash spending, to increase its resilience to financial shocks, the European Commission warned yesterday (2 June).

Building Blocks: What housing can do for Europe

In the interest of jobs and growth, of social justice and financial stability, of all the challenges Europe is faced with, the next European Commission and the European Parliament need to take up the housing issue with ambition and creativity, write Freek Spinnewijn and Marc Uhry.