Unaffordable and inadequate housing in Europe

The new Eurofound report 'Unaffordable and inadequate housing in Europe' was published recently. Panteia contributed by providing data for the Netherlands. The report offers insight into housing shortages in Europe and the solutions being devised in EU member states to counter this. In the Netherlands, for instance, the National Mortgage Guarantee is discussed, as is countering evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some interesting findings from a Dutch perspective include:

 

• The Netherlands has one of the highest percentages of households receiving rent allowance (18%). This is significantly lower in many countries, which are often below 2%.
• The Netherlands was one of the few countries that did not introduce a ban on evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Unlike many other countries, the Netherlands assumed voluntary good behaviour by homeowners.
• By some distance, the Netherlands has the highest number of homeowners with a mortgage: 61%. The Netherlands is followed by Sweden with 52%.
• In contrast, the number of homeowners without a mortgage is very low in the Netherlands (8%), while in Romania, for example, it is 95%. In Romania, but also in Slovakia, Hungary, Lithuania and Poland, very few people rent a house.
• Furthermore, the Netherlands is one of the most stable countries in the sense that, on average, there are few payment problems with both energy contracts and mortgages.
• Finally, the Dutch live relatively spaciously: compared to other countries, many people live in a house (75%) and few in a flat (21%).

 

The full report, with much more interesting information and comparisons between member states can be found on Eurofound's website.