In February 2026 the Housing Committee adopted its recommendations on the housing crisis in the EU, proposing solutions for decent, sustainable and affordable housing. In its final report, in fact, the Parliament’s Special Committee on the Housing Crisis emphasised that millions of Europeans face precarious living conditions due to the housing crisis and calls for EU legislation to address the viability and cost of building new housing.

To ensure decent housing, MEPs want specific earmarks of the funds included in the Commission’s Affordable Housing Plan to improve the energy performance of the residential buildings and to combat energy poverty. All new dwellings should meet quality standards on insulation, energy-efficiency, and air quality.

To improve living standards in overcrowded cities, MEPs want the upcoming law on short term rentals to strike a balance between facilitating tourism and housing affordability.

MEPs also want an adequate share of public and social housing in EU cities to increase the affordability and supply of housing for vulnerable people. Investments and fiscal aid MEPs urge member states to introduce incentive-based tax systems to support low- and middle-income households, remove tax barriers (i.e. high registration fees) for first time buyers, and make long-term rentals more affordable.

The report calls for more EU investment in housing by better coordinating existing funding and by reallocating unused Recovery and Resilience Plan resources to support the construction and renovation of social, public cooperative, and affordable housing.

MEPs also say any revision of state aid rules should facilitate public investment in social housing.

Faster and easier procedures MEPs want the Commission to propose a housing simplification package to reduce red tape in the housing sector.

The EU must enhance its industrial sovereignty in the construction and renovation sector, MEPs say, urging the Commission to scale up innovative and sustainable products, reinforce the single market for raw materials, and include minimum ‘Made in EU’ origin requirements for components in EU co-financed projects.

Finally, MEPs want the upcoming European strategy for housing construction to focus on improving the working conditions of skilled workers through training and fair wages.