Affordable housing
Sky-rocketing rents, insecure rental contracts, surging house prices and a shortage of publicly owned homes paint a sad picture. Our housing system is broken and young people shouldn’t have to put up with it any longer!
What’s the housing reality for young people?
💸 It’s too expensive
Between 2010 and 2024, house prices jumped 49% and rents rose 25% — but wages? Barely moved.
“I just moved into a room which cost me about half of my monthly income. I am quite certain it is not a legal construction, but I need a place to be able to go to work without traveling for 5 hours a day.”
- Lotte*, Netherlands, 28
⚠️ It’s precarious and insecure
Nearly half of young renters feel they could lose their home within the next three months.
“I was doing an Erasmus semester and my landlord kicked me out of her house without any advance notice. I had to find a new place to live within a day. [...] I was the 2nd person to whom it would happen. [...] She didn't even allow me to use the kitchen or to have friends over.”
- Saoirse*, Ireland, 26
🏚️ It’s often of poor quality
Unfit housing is on the rise, up 22% between 2019 and 2023. Damp walls, mould, broken heating — and no one to complain to for actual change.
“We're accepting a home that's unsuitable, without the slightest comfort, and that doesn't meet safety standards. It's terribly damp, with traces of mold on the walls. But we don't dare say anything: it's either that or the street."
- Mike*, Bulgaria, 21
🚫 Homelessness is rising
Homelessness across the EU has risen by 70% in 10 years — and it’s young people who are hit hardest.
“I was made homeless as the house my mother was renting was sold from underneath us with the landlord notifying us only after the letting agency put a “for sale” sign in our front garden. I had to live in a box room with my mam and sister in a family member's home for a year while we tried to get accommodation again. It took me almost an hour to walk to school every morning from this place and it was really tough to go to school and pretend everything was okay”.
- Leo*, Czech Republic, 21
⌛ Social housing? Not a real option
What’s the reality? Crazy long waitlists that stretch for years. Public and social housing now makes up just 8% of Europe’s housing.
“I moved to Ireland 10 years ago, me and my father have been trying to get a social house ever since, as buying one in a single parent family will never happen. We have been on the wait list for 9 years and still no luck. The rent in our apartment is increasing every year bit by bit. I cannot even get accommodation for college as I don’t have €600 a month plus money for food and school materials so I have to travel 2 hours.”
- Lola*, Ireland, 19
👎 No protection for young tenants
Landlords can neglect repairs, evict unfairly, or refuse deposits — inadequate tenant protections means young renters have little power to fight back.
“The heating in the building I lived in stopped working. It was never very reliable, but now the house was freezing. [...] My landlord's response: "we'll look into it, but the building is old, so don't expect much." (It never got fixed properly) When I eventually found new housing and discovered a couple corners in my house had mold, caused by the built up moisture because I kept my windows closed all the time to try and keep in whatever heat there was left in my home, my landlord was pissed and threatened to not pay me back my deposit.”
- Nicky*, Netherlands, 23
* Pseudonyms - not real names - for privacy reasons.
How did it get this bad?
Housing is a major site of frustration, disappointment and anger for countless young people across Europe. Housing has been transformed into a commodity, valued more as an investment than as a place to live. For too long, its essential role in people’s lives has been overlooked, fuelling a crisis that has hit young people the hardest.
Here’s what needs to happen:
We say: Enough is enough. Decent and affordable housing shouldn’t be a privilege - it should be available to all. As the housing crisis worsens, and with the European Commission’s 2024–2029 priorities now including a clear commitment to address it – the European Affordable Housing Plan – it’s time for real action to ensure these promises are not just words. We are calling for:
A major boost in public, social, and affordable housing supply
An end to the financialisation of housing - homes are for people, not profit
Secure, long-term rentals with guaranteed quality and strong tenant protections
Tougher restrictions on Airbnb and short-term lets to protect local communities
Action to end vacant homes and bring them back to life
More than a roof
This paper sets out the European Youth Forum’s position on housing. Formed through extensive consultation with our member organisations it highlights the urgent need for action to address what, for many young people, increasingly feels like a never-ending housing crisis.
Key Documents and Resources
Open Policy Documents
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