Photo: Hacker Noon
The new measures will be included in the Affordable Housing Act, which is currently being drafted. The European Commission plans to present it by the end of 2026, according to the Financial Times. The document is intended to define what restrictions cities and regions will be able to impose in areas with particularly high demand for housing.
This measure was prompted by the experience of tourist destinations in Europe. On average, short-term rentals account for only about 1.2% of the EU’s housing stock. But in popular destinations, their share is much higher: in Sorrento, Dubrovnik, and Fuerteventura, it can reach up to 20%.
Cities are already trying to rein in this market on their own. For example, Paris is restricting tourist rentals, and Barcelona plans to phase out existing licenses for tourist apartments by 2028. But local authorities regularly face lawsuits from property owners and the tourism industry.
This is precisely where the European Commission sees a gap in the existing rules. Cities are reluctant to impose strict restrictions without being certain that they will hold up in court. One of the contentious issues is how far authorities can go in limiting property owners’ right to rent to tourists.
And the problem extends far beyond Airbnb: housing prices in the EU have skyrocketed over the past decade, and supply has failed to keep up with demand. Therefore, the European Commission views short-term rentals as just one of the factors putting pressure on the market, alongside a shortage of new housing and other structural problems.
At the same time, Brussels does not intend to impose a blanket ban on Airbnb across the entire EU. The goal of the future legislation is to empower local authorities to take action in areas where the housing market is under particularly intense pressure, while preserving the economic benefits of tourism.
For short-term rental platforms, this marks a new phase of regulation. EU-wide transparency rules came into effect in May 2026: they require the registration of properties and the reporting of short-term rental data to authorities. The next step could be allowing cities to use this data to impose stricter restrictions in areas where housing is particularly expensive or in short supply.
