EU Energy and Housing Commissioner Dan Jørgensen met a group of young people in Barcelona on 20 April to discuss housing pressures and hear their personal experiences.
Participants described how housing costs and availability can affect study choices, work, health and moving out of the family home, according to the Commission’s account released on Monday.
One student from Belgium said housing conditions can vary widely across EU countries and called for better visibility of existing approaches such as intergenerational living.
Another participant, described as a full-time student, said growing up with housing instability affected their family’s wellbeing and that getting social housing felt “like winning the lottery.”
A further participant spoke about long commutes from the family home while starting university and said seasonal contracts, high prices and restrictions on couples renting together made stable housing harder to secure.
One young journalist said there can be cases where “the average rent can be higher than young people’s salary.”
Another participant who moved to Spain from another EU country said she experienced discrimination when looking for accommodation, saying she was told places were unavailable but Spanish friends were told they were available.
One participant with a spinal cord injury said a lack of accessible homes can lead to unnecessary institutionalisation and keep people out of their communities.
Commission outlines work on short-term rentals and housing stock
Jørgensen told the group housing had become “a generational problem in Europe” and said solutions needed to reflect different needs, including those of students, families and people with disabilities, the Commission said.
On short-term rentals, he said they can give some families flexibility and extra income but warned “excessive profit incentives” can “crowd local people out”, adding that the Commission is preparing EU-level legislation intended to give cities tools to manage the impact on housing availability.
He also spoke about using existing housing stock more effectively, including tackling empty properties and addressing housing bought “purely as a commodity.”
Jørgensen referred to Spain as an example where high construction levels have not stopped prices rising and mentioned repurposing existing buildings — such as converting former institutional facilities into student housing — as another option.
After the meeting, the young participants produced four recommendations, including prioritising renovation and better use of existing homes, expanding non-profit and cooperative housing, and improving long-term planning for affordable and social housing.
The Commission said it is rolling out what it described as the first European Affordable Housing Plan and invited people to take part in a High-Level Event on Housing on 5 May co-organised with the European Parliament.
