Five priorities for the European Affordable Housing Act.
Drawn from the Alliance's Q&A with the European Commission's Housing Task Force, March 2026.
Housing remains primarily a competence of Member States, regions and cities. But the EU can support reforms, data, investment and technical assistance — and it can shape the legal, financial and fiscal environment in which non-profit, community-led housing providers operate. The Alliance proposes five priorities.
- 01
Legal recognition for collaborative housing providers
Encourage Member States to establish an 'Affordable Housing Provider' status that explicitly includes CLTs and cooperatives, with equitable access to land — including pre-emption rights — and treatment comparable to public housing providers in urban planning systems.
- 02
Clear EU guidance on procurement and state aid
Reduce the chilling effect that procurement rulings (such as the 2021 Didam ruling in the Netherlands) and EU competition rules have on the allocation of public land and favourable terms to non-profit, community-led providers.
- 03
A blended-finance toolkit for community-led housing
An EU-level financial offer calibrated to CLTs and cooperatives, combining grants, guarantees, technical assistance and long-tenor loans — including dedicated support for the hardest-to-fund stages: pre-development and land acquisition.
- 04
Resolving the on-/off-balance sheet treatment
Clearer Eurostat guidance so public support for non-profit and community-led housing does not unnecessarily count against national debt — restoring fiscal space for affordable supply.
- 05
Land policy that supports community stewardship
Recognise and promote leasehold and right-to-use models (as in Zurich, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Sweden) and support Member States in retaining and allocating public land to community-led providers.
For the full evidence base and case studies — from Switzerland's financing ecosystem to Catalonia's eviction-prevention cooperatives — see the Alliance's Q&A.
Browse the Q&A