What are the new EU Housing Rules in 2026?
Real Estate News Europe - Here are the new EU Housing Rules, the EU Affordable Housing Act, published on September 9, 2026:
The lack of affordable housing has become one of the most urgent concerns for Europeans. According to the latest Eurobarometer, over 50% of city dwellers consider housing as an immediate and urgent problem where they live. The EU Affordable Housing Act gives public authorities the legal certainty when they choose to act, based on local specificities, within EU law. With the new EU Affordable Housing Act, investors and property owners operating across several local markets will benefit from more clarity on the EU legal framework.
Here are the new EU Housing Rules under the EU Affordable Housing Act:
The EU Affordable Housing Act provides the first-ever common European framework for assessing housing-related measures affecting the single market, while Housing Policy choices remain national, regional and local. The new EU Housing Rules are designed to help competent authorities identify “areas under housing stress” using a common methodology:
1 - EU countries that choose to restrict the use of housing, for instance for short-term rentals or vacant dwellings, must show that this contributes to local housing pressures and ensure that any measures are targeted, necessary and proportionate.
2 - The new EU Housing Rules for short-term rentals state that any measure must be targeted at activities that reduce the housing stock available for long-term use, especially where their scale, frequency or commercial character aggravate housing pressure.
3 - The new EU Housing Rules for short-term rentals state that, before introducing restrictions, authorities must also demonstrate that short-term rental activity has had a significant adverse effect on housing affordability or availability for at least three years, and that less restrictive measures would not be equally effective.
4 - EU countries must apply and enforce the EU Short-Term Rental Regulation, including its registration requirements and the removal or disabling of listings that do not comply with them, and, where available, use the data collected under that Regulation to support their assessment.
5 - The new EU Affordable Housing Act includes rules for second homes or prolonged vacancy state, providing a clearer framework for action. The Act protects legal certainty and legitimate expectations: conditions linked to acquisition cannot apply retroactively, appropriate transitional arrangements must be provided, and measures addressing long-term vacancy should take into account justified periods of non-occupation.
6 - The new EU Affordable Housing Act supports EU countries in their efforts to increase housing supply in areas that need it most, including through faster planning and permitting of new construction renovation, repurposing buildings and facilitating investment. Authorities are also encouraged to concentrate such efforts to increase housing supply via Housing Acceleration Plans.
7 - The new EU Affordable Housing Act does not ban or restrict Short-Term Rentals. If authorities decide that action is needed to protect housing affordability and availability, they must show that the short-term rental activity is having a significant adverse effect on the local housing market.
8 - The new EU Affordable Housing Act encourages authorities to make full use of available EU and national funding and investment instruments to increase housing supply and the possibilities offered by EU State aid rules.
