Housing is first and foremost a question of human dignity. To live in dignity, one needs a house — a home. A place that gives stability, safety, and security, in particular to the family, which needs a home to be anchored and a secure place in which to bring up children. A home is the start of a flourishing life for families and individuals who contribute to our communities and societies. We cannot consider housing merely an economic issue or a home solely a financial asset or market commodity.

Many European societies are facing a housing market in crisis. Increasingly high rents and housing prices pressure people’s financial situation and cause distress.  Speculative practices and the excessive concentration of ownership are a growing concern. Current prices affect in particular young people, for whom access to affordable housing is a challenge stalling their lives. When young people cannot afford a suitable home, they cannot afford to start a family. Faced with ageing populations, this contributes directly to the demographic decline across Europe. Starting a family must be an achievable hope and reality again, not a financial impossibility. 

The situation in Spain, where Prime Minister Sánchez called for snap elections on 29 November 2026, is illustrative. Rising rents and housing prices, the latter having doubled since 2015, have put severe pressure on households. Many young people still live with their parents because they cannot afford to rent or buy a home. Similar trends can be observed in other EU member states. Recently, protests broke out following the forced removal of the 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal, who passed away on 7 October 2026, by an investment firm that bought the building she lived in. The protests contributed to the eventual call for snap elections. 

Alfonso Galdón, President of Valores, ECPP member party from Spain:

“A country that forces its young people to choose between accessing a home and starting a family is mortgaging its own future. In Spain, we need a housing policy that gives young people back the possibility of building a life project, protects vulnerable families and guarantees legal certainty for small property owners. Housing must be neither a luxury for some nor a burden for others: it must once again be a home, the place from which families and the future of our society are built.” 

ECPP advocates for a relational view of the economy, including the housing market. The aim should be to serve the common good and to value and develop healthy relationships between people. Maximising profit cannot come at the expense of people and community, and should not be a goal in itself. We therefore reject the extreme financialisation and speculation on the housing market that treat it as a vehicle for short-term profit instead of achieving long-term stability. 

ECPP MEP Niels Geuking, substitute member of the European Parliament’s Special Committee on the Housing Crisis in the European Union: 

“A secure and affordable home gives young people the freedom to build their lives and start a family. We need homes that are large enough and affordable for families with several children, alongside a tax-free first purchase of an owner-occupied home and publicly supported first-home loans with additional support linked to the number of children. These measures must go hand in hand with more housing supply. The opportunity to own a home should not depend on inherited wealth.”

Member State governments bear the primary responsibility for housing, and ECPP calls on them to act. ECPP supports national policies that protect and empower both tenants and small owners against abusive and speculative practices, improve the affordability of rents and home ownership, and foster intergenerational solidarity. ECPP advocates for housing policies that reflect the needs of families at every stage of life. We particularly support policies that prioritise young families wanting to start a family; that is an investment in the future.