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MALTATODAY 12 March 2023

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12 NEWS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 12 MARCH 2023 NICOLE MEILAK MALTESE people spend the smallest share of income on housing within the European Union, according to new statis- tics published by Eurostat. In Malta, the general popu- lation is estimated to spend around 9% of their disposable income on housing costs, ac- cording to 2021 data. This is the lowest figure across the member states, with Malta followed by Cyprus and Lith- uania, who respectively spend 11% and 12% of their dispos- able income on housing costs. The highest shares of hous- ing costs were seen in Greece, where nationals spend 34% of their income on housing costs, and Denmark, where people spend 26% of their disposable income on housing. The third highest share was found in Netherlands at 24%. Almost across the board, peo- ple at risk of poverty spend a significantly higher share of their disposable income on housing: the lower one's dis- posable income is, the high- er the share of essential cost spending is going to be. In Malta, people at risk of poverty spent 18% of their in- come on housing costs. In Cy- prus and Lithuania this is 19% and 24% respectively. For people living in Greece who are at risk of poverty, the share of disposable income spent on housing reaches a whopping 60%. In Denmark and Nethelands this figure stands at 57% and 48% respec- tively. On average across the EU, the share of housing costs in disposable income was 19% in 2021. For people at risk of pov- erty, the share was 38%. This data is part of the Hous- ing in Europe publication, which provides data on hous- ing, the construction sector, quality of housing and environ- mental impact. Despite the low share of hous- ing costs, Malta's house prices have skyrocketed since 2010. Between 2010 and 2015 house prices in Malta remained below the EU average, but from 2015 onwards the pattern shifted and prices in Malta were higher than the EU average. Only recently, in 2021 specif- ically, have local house prices fallen below the EU average. But rental prices paint a differ- ent picture: between 2010 and 2021 rental prices have for the most part remained above the EU average, and by a significant amount. But Maltese people remain predominantly home-owners, with almost 82% of people in Malta owning the home they live in. And Maltese homes tend to be on the larger side of the EU average, at least in terms of number of rooms per person. In Malta, the average house has 2.3 rooms per per- son, marking the largest num- ber recorded among Member States. Malta is followed by Belgium, Ireland and the Netherlands in this regard, which all have 2.1 rooms per person. At the bottom end of the scale, Poland and Romania both have an average 1.1 rooms per person. Croatia, Latvia and Slovakia meanwhile have 1.2 rooms on average per person. And with an average 2.4 per- sons per household, Malta also experienced the second-lowest overcrowding rate, meaning only 2.9% of the Maltese pop- ulation were living in an over- crowded home. The highest rate was experi- enced in Latvia, where 41.3% of the population in 2021 was liv- ing in an overcrowded home. Instead, Malta has the high- est share of under-occupied homes in the EU, with 71.8% of the population living in a home that is deemed too large for the needs of the household living in it. Eurostat pointed out that a common cause of under-occu- pation is older people remain- ing in their home after their children have grown up and left. Maltese spend smallest share of income on housing costs JAMES DEBONO A staggering 91% of the Maltese say their personal financial situation is "good" ac- cording to a Eurobarometer survey that ranks the island's respondents, the Danes, Dutch and Luxembourgers as the most likely in Europe to express a positive judge- ment on their personal financial situation The high rate is in severe contrast with the 69% EU average. And while the Maltese who say their sit- uation is "very good" declined from 38% to 31%, the "rather good" cohort climbed from 48% to 60%, while those who say it is "bad" or "rather bad" fell from 13% to just 9%. This suggests a slight dampening in spirits as respondents are more likely to con- sider their financial situation as "rather good" instead of "very good". The same assessment is made of the state of the Maltese econo- my: the very-goods fell from 37% to 28%, while the rather-goods increased from 42% to 47%. Overall, the Maltese (75%) are the third most likely in Europe after Luxembourg- ers (86%) and Danes (79%) to consider the state of their national economy pos- itively. In the meantime, at 63% trust in the na- tional government in Malta has remained the same as it was in June, the second highest in the EU after Luxembourg (71%). In the EU as a whole, only 32% said they trust their nationality's gov- ernment. Moreover, two-thirds of the Maltese consider inflation and ris- ing prices as one of their two greatest personal concerns, an increase of 11 points over June 2022. Now Change from June 2022 Describe financial situation of their household as very good 31% -7 Describe financial situation of their household as rather good 60% +12 Describe state of Maltese economy as very good 28% -9 Describe state of Maltese economy as rather good 47% +5 Describe employment situation in Malta as very good 33% -7 Describe employment situation in Malta as rather good 47% +4 Describe provision of public services in Malta as very good 29% -8 Describe provision of public services in Malta as rather good 44% +2 Trust the national government 63% 0 Trust the European Union 64% -7 Think inflation is one of their 2 main concerns 66% +11 Inflation is bugbear, but Maltese rate highly their personal finances

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