Europe is facing an unprecedented housing crisis. An analysis by Euronews Business reveals alarming figures: in many cities, the gross minimum wage is not enough to cover the rent.
It is therefore essential to identify structural solutions to resolve this housing crisis.
However, at a time when certain politicians in Brussels are chanting populist and irresponsible slogans against short-term rentals, the ranking of the minimum gross wage to rent ratio gives pause for thought. Should Brussels sacrifice short-term rentals, even though they are becoming increasingly popular among citizens from around the world year on year (see Eurostat figures)?
Has the impact of policies banning short-term rentals on local residents been assessed? And what about global citizens, who, whilst they do not vote for local elected representatives, will be directly affected by the policies those very representatives implement? Short-term rentals are associated with a pronounced NIMBY syndrome …
Question 1: Will rents actually fall, or at least rise less, as a result of this ban alone?
Question 2: Will it still be possible to travel to these destinations where short-term rentals are banned or restricted to primary residences, with a significantly reduced range of accommodation available, and if so, at what cost?
Question 3: As a corollary to question 2, what impact will policies banning short-term rentals have on the economic vitality of cities, in terms of visitor numbers (and also on hotels! – see the example of Lisbon, where the policy has been revised) and on travellers’ spending (bars, cafés, restaurants, retail outlets, service providers linked to short-term rentals, etc.)?
Whilst Brussels has opted for a “zero” quota (i.e. a ban on professional operators), and whilst other cities—despite being significantly lower down the affordable housing rankings—take a different view of the economic dimension and apply quota mechanisms of around 10% in areas under pressure, it is clear that it is time to bring objectivity to the debate, and that populism must give way to professionalism in political circles: it is time for data analysis to inform justified and proportionate decisions that serve the public interest, rather than the pursuit of easy votes!
