15-10-2025

Beyond its material function, home is a space of meaning, memory, and control. It is the place where individuals feel safe, autonomous, and in command of their environment—a space they know, shape, and invest in emotionally and materially. For older people in particular, the home represents a lifetime of memories, attachment, and identity. It is therefore no surprise that a large majority of Europeans wish to grow old in their own homes.
In the aftermath of the Covid-19 crisis, home has become multifunctional: a place of work, care, and rest, central to everyday life. Yet this transformation also revealed inequalities in housing conditions, accessibility, and adaptability to evolving life circumstances.