Housing Crisis in Europe: Over 40% of Income Spent on Rent
According to Eurostat, housing prices in the EU have increased by 69% since 2015. In some countries, they have more than doubled. Rent and energy costs continue to rise.
“Europe is facing a crisis driven by rising housing prices and increased costs,” stated the European Council.
The housing crisis particularly affects those spending over 40% of their disposable income on housing. In 2025, this level averaged 7.7% across the EU.
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Dr. Hanna Widmer from ETH Zürich noted that rising housing costs outpace income growth, especially in lower income brackets.
Greece shows the highest level of unaffordable housing expenses: 26.4% of people spend over 40% of their income. In comparison, Denmark has 14.7%, while Germany stands at 11.2%.
Outside the EU, high levels are seen in Switzerland (15.3%) and Norway (13.5%).
By 2025, over 34 million EU residents live in households spending more than 40% of their income on housing. Germany ranks first with 9.4 million affected individuals, followed by Turkey and France.
Greece again leads in the number of people at risk of poverty spending over 40% of their income on housing.
