Associations question European ambitions in the fight against poor housing

The trends are "worrying," with the number of homeless people increasing in various European countries, particularly in Finland, Denmark, and Ireland, according to a report published Thursday by the European Federation of National Organizations Working with the Homeless (Feantsa) and the Foundation for Housing the Disadvantaged.

In total, associations count nearly 1,3 million homeless people in the EU. In France, around 350.000 people are homeless, including around 20.000 on the streets, according to this report.

As for housing, purchase prices have jumped by 38,8% and rents have increased by 14,4% in the EU since 2018.

Median rents are so expensive in many cities that none of the six typical low-income household profiles (single person with an average pension, single-parent family on minimum wage, for example) can afford housing without exceeding the threshold of 33% of income spent on housing.

According to calculations by the Housing Foundation and Feantsa, this is the case in Berlin, Madrid, Rome, Paris, Amsterdam, and even Dublin, where the median rent per square meter reaches 31,5 euros.

Dignity issue

"More than a housing crisis," it is "a social crisis," according to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who declared in her State of the Union address in early September that it is a matter of "dignity," "fairness," and "the future of Europe."

It has launched work in 2024 to develop the "first-ever European Plan for Affordable Housing", expected by the end of the year.

EU countries also set themselves an "ideal" target of zero homeless people by 2030 in 2022.

For the European Federation and the Housing Foundation, this objective "is difficult to achieve, perhaps not realistic," Margaux Charbonnier, project manager at Feantsa, said Thursday during an online press conference.

However, "even if we are not on the right track, this is not a reason to give up, it should encourage us to redouble our efforts, to build a more realistic roadmap."

Despite French President Emmanuel Macron's promise that no one would sleep on the streets by 2022, the number of homeless people in France has increased and this population has become more diverse, with a growing presence of women and children (more than 2.000 at the end of August), according to associations.

Both associations hope for measures to combat homelessness in the future European plan, but the very term "affordable housing" raises questions. This notion "can sometimes mean everything and nothing because it is very consensual and very vague," said Manuel Domergue, director of studies at the Housing Foundation.

Their fear is that the European plan will finance housing dedicated to the middle classes, which would provide less support for housing for low-income households.

One in five tenants overwhelmed by their rent

In 2024, more than 16,5 million European households were spending more than 40% of their income on their housing (a threshold known as the excessive effort rate), or 8,2% of EU households, according to the report, which uses data from Eurostat.

And among private sector tenants, one in five households has an excessive effort rate.

The poorest 20% of households are the ones experiencing the most difficulties, according to the associations, which note that 27,8% of them have an excessive level of effort.

"The European plan must protect and support social housing, which is under pressure in some countries," said Ruth Owen, deputy director of the European Federation, who fears seeing social housing "diluted."

Another concern is the appeal to "private investors" who risk wanting "sufficient financial profitability" to the detriment of tenants, pointed out Sarah Coupechoux, head of the European mission at the Housing Foundation.

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.