Von der Leyen to push even harder on housing in 2026

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced major housing-related initiatives while unveiling Brussels’ legislative agenda for 2026 on Tuesday, underscoring the EU’s ongoing bid to take on the bloc-wide cost of living crisis.

“Affordability is a main subject of this Commission Work Program for 2026,” von der Leyen said in a speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, stressing the need to address the high price of housing in order to “protect our citizens and uphold our values.”

“How can Europe be competitive if people working full time cannot make a living?” she asked. “If they cannot afford to live where the good jobs are, because they do not find housing?”

Brussels’ agenda for the next year will include a landmark initiative on short-term rentals that is due in the spring. Tourist flats — furnished accommodation for brief stays — are a major factor in sky-high housing costs in the bloc’s major cities, and Housing Commissioner Dan Jørgensen has signaled a desire to regulate such properties.

“We cannot allow that locals are pushed out of their neighbourhoods,” Jørgensen said Tuesday, adding that the Commission’s proposal “will strike the right balance with a firm but fair approach.”

Toward the end of 2026 Brussels will publish its Construction Services Act, which aims to slash regulations related to the building sector and accelerate the construction of new homes. The new law will follow up on the Commission’s upcoming Affordable Housing Plan, which is due to be released in December and according to Jørgensen will “target the financialization of our housing stock” and help end “selfish speculation on a basic need like our homes.”

The EU’s main institutions are scrambling to address the housing crisis, which is fueling the growth of far-right parties throughout the EU. In the Netherlands, Geert Wilders and his far-right Party for Freedom won the 2023 national vote campaigning on a housing shortage he said was being exacerbated by migrants and asylum seekers. Likewise, Portugal’s Chega party surged to become the country’s leading opposition this year by railing against the failure of establishment parties to tackle soaring home prices. 

Von der Leyen signaled her personal commitment to take on the issue ahead of her reelection as Commission president in 2024, and described the housing shortage as a social crisis in this year’s State of the European Union address. The European Parliament launched a special committee on the crisis at the beginning of this year, and national leaders are due to discuss the issue at this week’s European Council summit in Brussels.

“Across all sectors, my point is the same,” von der Leyen told lawmakers on Tuesday. “Europe must deliver for all of its people.”