The European Commission is expected to present its draft Affordable Housing Regulation on Wednesday, 9 September, following approval by the College of Commissioners. The proposal aims to give municipalities and regions legal tools to limit short-term rentals of the Airbnb type in areas facing housing pressure.
Who is presenting the plan
The new framework is expected to be presented by Dan Jørgensen, Commissioner for Energy and Housing, together with Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice-President for a Clean, Just and Competitive Transition.
What the framework would allow
According to available information, the framework would allow local and regional authorities to restrict access to short-term rentals of properties that are not the owner's main residence, as well as the acquisition or use of land and property not intended for permanent habitation. Primary residences are expected to be exempt from the restrictions, on the basis that their short-term rental does not, according to the text, remove housing from the long-term market.
Conditions for activating the measures
To activate the measures, authorities would need to demonstrate that an area is under housing pressure based on three criteria:
- A high ratio of housing prices to income
- An upward trend in that ratio over the past decade
- An unlikely easing of the pressure over the next three years
Authorities would also need to document that short-term rentals have had a negative impact on the availability or price of housing for at least three years before any measure is approved.
Pressure already visible across European cities
The Commission's proposal responds to conditions already documented across several EU cities. Housing prices have risen 64.9% across most European capitals between 2015 and 2025, while rents have increased 21.8%, according to EU data. Residents in cities such as Lisbon, Barcelona and Prague have complained that short-term rental platforms have removed homes from the long-term market and driven up prices.
Nearly 10% of people living in EU cities spend more than 40% of their disposable income on housing, according to 2024 EU data. While short-term rentals account for around 1.2% of the EU's overall housing stock, their share can reach as high as 20% in popular tourist destinations such as Sorrento, Dubrovnik and Fuerteventura.
Several cities have already introduced their own restrictions ahead of the EU framework:
- Paris: the city limits short-term rentals to homeowners for 90 days a year, while second homes may only be rented to students or business visitors, under strict registration and tax requirements.
- Barcelona: the city has announced plans to phase out licences for tourist apartments by 2028.
- Budapest: residents of the city's sixth district narrowly voted to ban short-term rentals from 2026, a decision that could affect the wider housing market in one of Europe's most visited destinations.
- Vienna: the city is reportedly considering a ban on short-term rentals in its city centre.
- Berlin: the city has restricted renting out more than half of an apartment's floor space since 2016.
Many of these local measures have faced legal challenges, with property owners arguing they conflict with EU rules protecting the freedom to provide services, which is part of the legal gap the Commission's new framework is intended to address.
