Between 2015. and 2024. The prices of apartments in the European Union increased by 53%, while in some countries almost tripled.
The combination of higher construction costs, growing interest on mortgage loans, limited offers and real estate purchases as investments, has led to enormous apartment prices across Europe.
The biggest jump records Hungary, where apartments now cost three times as much as 2015. years. In Budapest, the prices of apartments today range between 250,000 and 1.5 million euros.
After Hungary, Iceland followed, where apartment prices rose about 2.5 times. In the capital of Reykjavik and the surrounding municipalities, the average price is about 558,000 euros. Although the growth pace is slowed down due to the increase of demand and weakening the demand, the inflation of the price of apartments in Iceland continued to be 8% on an annual basis in March.
In the rest of Europe, a similar growth trend is noticeable. Lithuania, Portugal, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Estonia and Poland recorded more than duplication of apartment prices.
On the other side of the scale is Finland, where real estate prices have not significantly more than almost a decade ago. However, the differences between rural areas and the Helsinki are large. According to the Global Property Guide report, the decline in the real estate market in Finland, which began in 2021. and brought a decline in prices of 14% per year, is now considered completed. Mild growth is expected, especially in new construction, while the prices of used apartments will increase only 1-3% during 2025. years. In Helsinki, the price of an apartment of 75 square meters is between 400,000 and 500,000 euros, investor me.
For Greece Eurostat, there is no data, but according to the Greece Bank index, prices in urban areas are slightly above the 2008 year. Years.
Extreme Case: Turkey
Van EU, Turkey records incredible price growth – as many as 17 times compared to 2015. year. In Istanbul, two bedroom apartment now costs about 120,000 euros. However, this amount does not act conveniently when the annual consumer price inflation is taken into account from almost 38% and the average gross salary slightly above 600 euros per month.
Is the rent of apartment more accessible?
The rent of the apartment also increased significantly across Europe, although more slowly than the prices of real estate.
According to Eurostat’s last data, the rent increased by 26.7% in the EU between 2010 and the fourth quarter of 2024. Years.
Estonia is a leabet with a jump of over 212% compared to 2010. year. Lithuania recorded a growth of 175%, Iceland 120%, and Hungary 114%.
Greece is the only state where the rentals are cheaper in this period – a drop in 13%.
Turkey again leads with extreme – leases are almost 8.8 times more than ten years ago, according to OECD data.
Housing costs: Where is the most expensive?
Housing costs – including directing – increased significantly in many EU members.
In the period from 2015. to March 2025. years, Estonians recorded the highest growth – they pay more than twice as compared to ten years ago.
Following Poland and Czech Republic, with cost growth of about 180% in the same period.
On average, housing costs in the EU increased by more than 40%. The smallest growth was recorded in Spain – just above 20%, and even smaller in Albania, which is a candidate for EU membership.
At absolute prices, Ireland is the most expensive EU country, according to data from 2023. years. France and Germany are slightly above the EU, Italy and Spain slightly below.
Malta and Hungary pay two-thirds of the EU average, and Bulgarians are on the bottom with below 40%.
Youth is getting harder to leave parental home
The high rental prices and real estate are curve for many young Europeans not leaving the parent home for years after employment.
The average age of leaving Parental House in the EU is 26.3 years, but differences are huge – from 21.4 years in Finland to as much as 31.8 in Croatia.
Where did the most investment in real estate?
In 2023 years, the residents of Cyprus invested as many as 8.6% of the Earth’s GDP in the real estate, according to Eurostat. It is followed by Italy with 7%, Germany with 6.9% and France with 6.4%.
The lowest investment rate was recorded in Poland (2.2% of GDP) and Greece (2.3%).
The average investment rate in EU housing amounted to 5.8% of GDP in 2023. years – which represents a value of about a thousand billion euros.
