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According to Eurostat, the housing costs faced by Luxembourg residents are among the highest in Europe, as residents spent more than a quarter of their monthly budget on housing in 2023.
In its latest publication on the housing situation in Europe, Eurostat determined that Luxembourg is among the countries where housing accounts for the largest share of residents' budgets.
Eurostat estimates that, in 2023, Luxembourg residents spent around 27.5% of their disposable income on housing. This is slightly less than the 35% estimated by the Housing Observatory for 2022. Only Greece is worse off (35.2%), while neighbouring countries are better off: On average, Germany's residents spent 25.2% of their disposable income on housing, compared to 18.8% in Belgium, and 17.9% in France. That same figure was even lower in Portugal, standing at 14%.
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The situation is particularly problematic for low-income households. Luxembourg residents earning less than €2,518 (the "at-risk-of-poverty" threshold in Luxembourg, corresponding to less than 60% of the country's median income) spend 48.5% of their monthly budget on housing. According to the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (STATEC), almost 120,000 people were living below this threshold in 2023.
But even for residents who are not at risk of falling into poverty, housing still accounts for 23.6% of their monthly budgets.
Tensions on the Grand Duchy's housing market have led to a sharp increase in purchase prices and rents in recent years, further fuelling an ongoing housing crisis. According to Eurostat, rents rose by more than 11% between 2015 and 2023. Despite a fall in recent months, the price of buying a home has risen by more than 70%.
As it stands, housing in Luxembourg is 86% more expensive than in the rest of Europe.