Forecast: How the housing crisis will continue in Europe

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In Germany, the number of building permits issued fell by more than 27% in the first half of the year. In France, the decline was 28% over the same period, and for the year as a whole, the UK expects a 25% drop in new housing starts. Sweden, for its part, is experiencing its worst recession since the 1990s crisis, "with a level of construction that is less than a third of what is expected to meet demand. "

The hardest-hit countries are the most prosperous on the continent, Bloomberg emphasizes, and the slowdown is affecting both family home construction and large housing projects. So far, only Spain and Portugal are bucking the trend, but there are still serious deficits, which shows how difficult it is to tackle the problem,'''Especially when some initiatives aimed at attracting investors, such as Portugal's golden visa programs, have caused real estate prices to rise.

In Shellefteå, Sweden, a housing shortage could hinder plans for Northvolt AB, which plans to install its first battery factory for electric cars. "The company employs more than a hundred people a month, but the slowdown in the construction industry makes it almost impossible for this town of 36,000 people to keep up." Nationally, more than a thousand construction companies have already gone bankrupt in the first ten months of 2023.

This situation not only threatens economic growth, but also exacerbates social inequality and fuels political tensions. "В''Germany's affordable housing was one of the key commitments of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's ruling coalition when it came to power in 2021,' Bloomberg recalls.