Rome and EIB Team Up to Bridge the City's Affordable Housing Gap

Thirty thousand families in Rome currently fall into a precarious housing limbo, earning too much for public assistance but priced out of the private market. To address this, Mayor Roberto Gualtieri and the European Investment Bank have launched a technical partnership to design a new, sustainable rental housing fund.

The agreement, signed at the Campidoglio by Mayor Gualtieri and EIB Vice-President Gelsomina Vigliotti, marks a shift toward attracting institutional capital into the city’s residential sector. Rather than direct lending, the EIB will provide specialized advisory services to build the financial architecture required for an Affordable Housing Fund. This model aims to integrate private investment with public oversight, ensuring that new developments remain accessible for students, young workers, and middle-income households struggling with stagnant wages and rising rents.

EIB experts will guide the city through complex legal frameworks, state-aid requirements, and public accounting rules to ensure the initiative remains viable long-term. For Rome, the objective is to acquire, renovate, and build thousands of units that bypass the limitations of traditional public housing systems. Councillor Tobia Zevi emphasized that this move targets a critical demographic currently left behind by existing social programs.

Beyond basic affordability, the strategy aligns with Rome’s broader climate goals. City planners intend to pair these new residential projects with energy-efficiency upgrades and urban regeneration efforts, feeding into the European mission for climate-neutral cities. This collaboration draws on a four-decade history between Rome and the EIB, which has previously funneled €1.7 billion into the capital’s infrastructure, including metro expansions and waste management. The housing initiative now serves as a pilot for the EIB’s wider European strategy, which aims to support €6 billion in housing projects by 2026.