Almost 70 percent of the European Union population owns a house, the rest decide to rent – according to the latest Eurostat survey. Renting is the most popular in Germany among all EU countries. According to Eurostat, there are on average 1.6 rooms per person in the EU.
The highest percentage of ownership was recorded in Romania (96% of the population lived in their own home), on Slovakia (94%), v Croatia and on Hungary (91% each).
In all EU countries except German, home ownership is more common. In Germany, 52 percent population are tenants. They took the next places Austria (46%) i Denmark (40%).
In the EU in 2023, 51.7 percent. population lived at home, while 47.7 percent lived in an apartment (and 0.6 percent lived in other accommodation, such as houseboats and vans).
Houses are most common in two thirds of EU countries. Ireland (90%) had the highest percentage of the population living at home, followed by Netherlands (79 percent), Belgium and Croatia (77% each). The highest percentage of apartments was recorded in Spain (66%), Latvia (65%), Malta (63%) and Germany (61%).
Few rooms, many residents
According to Eurostat, there were an average of 1.6 rooms per person in the EU. Among EU countries, the highest numbers were recorded in Luxembourg and Malta (2.2 rooms per person), followed by Belgium and the Netherlands (2.1 rooms). At the other end of the scale were Poland (1.1 rooms) and Croatia, Latvia, Romania and Slovakia (all with an average of 1.2 rooms per person).
A related indicator is the number of people per household. In the EU in 2023 there were on average 2.3 people per household. Among EU countries, this number ranged from 3.1 people in Slovakia, 2.9 in Poland, 2.7 in Croatia and Ireland to 2.0 people in Germany, Denmark and Sweden and 1.9 people in Finland and Lithuania.
Eurostat writes that the quality of housing can be measured in many ways. One is whether people live in an overcrowded house. In the EU in 2023, 16.8 percent. population lived in such conditions.
In 2023 the highest overpopulation rates were recorded in Latvia (40.9%), Romania (40.0%) and Bulgaria (34.9%), and the lowest in Cyprus (2.2%), Malta (2.4%) and the Netherlands (3.8%).
Under-occupied homes in the EU
The opposite of an overcrowded house is an under-occupied house, which means that it is considered too large for the needs of the family living in it. The classic cause of underhousing is older people or couples remaining at home after their children have grown up and moved out. In the EU, one third of the population lived in an under-housed home in 2023, a share that has been quite stable since 2010.
In 2023, the highest percentage of under-occupied homes was recorded in Cyprus (71.3%), Malta (69.2%) and Ireland (66.0%), and the lowest in Romania (7.2%). in Latvia (9.8%) and Greece (12.3%).
In the EU in 2023 10.6 percent population was unable to maintain adequate heat at home. The highest percentages were recorded in Spain, Portugal (20.8% each) and Bulgaria (20.7%), and the lowest in Luxembourg (2.1%), Finland (2.6%) and Slovenia (3, 6 percent).
When it comes to a leaking roof, damp walls, floors or foundations, or rotting window frames or floors, 15.5 percent the EU population had such a problem. The highest percentages were recorded in Cyprus (31.6%), Portugal (29.0%) and Spain (23.0%).
Main photo source: Jan Zwolinski/Shutterstock