The hottest political issue European politicians aren't talking about. This article is part of The Home Front, a special report on housing in Europe. From POLITICO’s Global Policy Lab: Living Cities.

The European housing crisis, driven by historical neglect, inflation, and rising housing costs, has become a major political issue with protests in cities like Lisbon, Amsterdam, Milan and Berlin. The crisis is worsened by local and national authorities' inaction and pressures from platforms like Airbnb. There are effective models, for example, in Denmark and Switzerland that offer affordable housing solutions with public finances and cooperative housing. Despite this, in many European cities, high land prices and a lack of new construction continue to pose extreme challenges to affordable housing.