68 percent inhabitants of the European Union had their own apartment or house in 2024 – according to the latest Eurostat report “Housing in Europe – 2025 edition”. The remaining 32 percent Europeans lived in rented premises.
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The highest percentage of property owners was recorded in:
- Romania (94%)
- Slovakia (93%)
- Hungary (91.6%)
- Croatia (91%)
At the other extreme there were:
- Germany (47%)
- Austria (55%)
How many Poles have their own place? Poland against the background of the EU
What's it like in Poland? We are definitely above the EU average, which is 68.4%.
According to Eurostat, 86% of people in our country had their own home. people (we are in sixth place in the ranking). However, 14 percent lived in rented properties.
How do Europeans live? New Eurostat data
The Eurostat report shows that in 2024, 51 percent EU inhabitants lived at home, and 48 percent in apartments. Only 1 percent Europeans lived in other types of accommodation, such as barges and campers.
Not surprisingly, this structure varies depending on the type of locality. In cities, apartments dominate (73%), while houses constitute 27%. In the suburbs and towns the proportions were 57 percent, respectively. apartments and 43 percent houses. In rural areas, as much as 83 percent population lived in houses, and only 16 percent in apartments.
House or apartment? In Ireland, 90 percent lives in houses
The largest number of houses among residents was recorded in Ireland (90%), the Netherlands and Belgium (77% each) and Croatia (76%). In turn, most apartments are located in Spain (65%), Latvia (64%) and Malta (63%).
In Poland, 58.4 percent people lived at home, and 41.4 percent in the apartment. In Polish cities, home was the place of residence for 24.1 percent. people, and an apartment for 75.6 percent. In the suburbs the proportions were 59.4%. and 40.6 percent, while in rural areas as much as 89.8 percent. residents chose a house, and only 10 percent apartment.
Housing in the EU. Space and number of rooms
On average, there were 1.7 rooms per EU resident in 2024. The highest number of rooms per person was recorded in Malta (2.2), followed by Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands (2.1). The least – in Slovakia and Romania (1.1 each), as well as in Poland and Latvia (1.2 rooms per person each).
The average number of people in a household was 2.3. The largest households were in Slovakia (3.1 people), Poland (2.9), Croatia and Ireland (2.7), and the smallest were in Germany, Denmark and Sweden (2.0) and Finland and Lithuania (1.9).
Overpopulation and too spacious houses
The report draws attention to the problem of overpopulation – in 2024 it affected 17%. EU residents. The highest rates were recorded in Romania (41%), Latvia (39%) and Bulgaria (34%). The lowest – in Cyprus (2%), Malta (4%) and the Netherlands (5%). In Poland, overpopulation concerned 16 percent. inhabitants.
On the other hand, as many as 33 percent real estate in the EU was considered too large in relation to the number of inhabitants. Most often, this applies to older people or couples whose children have already moved out. The largest number of such houses were in Cyprus (70%), Ireland (67%) and Malta (64%), the least in Romania (7%), Latvia (10%) and Greece (13%). In Poland, this indicator was 17.3%.
Heating problem
In 2024, 9 percent EU residents were unable to provide adequate heat at home. The highest percentage of this problem was recorded in Bulgaria and Greece (19% each), Lithuania and Spain (18% each), and the lowest in Finland, Slovenia and Poland (less than 3%).
