April 2024 - a newly released publication ‘Housing Observatories: A View of Affordability in Times of Soaring Inflation’ coordinated by ISHF (International Social Housing Festival) was co-authored by LISER researchers Kristell Leduc, Nathalie Lorentz, Patrick Bousch and Eugenio Peluso. The innovative report showcases research from Luxembourg’s Housing Observatory among the other European Housing Observatories.

A result of the ISHF2023 Conference, the novel report is a collaborative effort by observatories and institutes that manage housing data at regional and local level across Europe, with the objective or sharing experiences and learning from each other. The workshop Housing Observatories: a view of affordability in times of soaring inflation brought together 11 observatories from different cities and regions in Europe in the framework of the International Social Housing Festival in Barcelona.

In LISER’s chapter, its co-authors presented the Housing Observatory of Luxembourg, its objectives and studies. It focused particularly on two main indicators developed these last years, namely the Net Housing Affordability Ratio (NHAR) and Cumulative Housing Deprivation (CHD).

Net Housing Affordability Ratio (NHAR)

NHAR is an indicator that highlights the ability of households to access and maintain themselves in housing. It measures the ratio between housing costs, which include mortgage payments, rents and typical household operational expenditures such as electricity and heating, and the household’s disposable income (EUROSTAT definition). The latter is defined as the financial resources available for household consumption and savings, i.e. after taxes and social security contributions. An examination of this indicator offers valuable insights into fluctuations in housing costs.

Cumulative Housing Deprivation (CHD)

The aim of CHD is to measure and assess the extent of housing deprivation within a population. This multidimensional approach to housing conditions therefore complements the NHAR, which focuses on the financial side. It allows for a better understanding of the housing conditions of the least well-off in a holistic rather than unidimensional way. Moreover, this methodology can provide a synthetic assessment of both the incidence and severity of housing deprivation across the population (see Aaberge, Peluso, Sigstad, 2019 for further details).

Learn more about NHAR and CHD as well as works of other European Housing Observatories in the publication found here.