Since 2010 house prices in Cyprus have declined 2%, the third largest dip in the European Union but rents have gone in the other direction, according to Eurostat.
Over this period, house prices increased in 24 EU countries and decreased in three, including Cyprus, but current trends are upward.
They more than doubled in Estonia (+200%), Hungary (+180%), Lithuania (+146%), Latvia (+132%), Luxembourg (+126%), Czechia (+123%) and Austria (+122%).
Decreases were observed in Greece (-14%), Italy (-9%) and Cyprus (-2%).
For rents, prices increased in 26 EU countries and decreased in one, with the highest rises in Estonia (+212%) and Lithuania (+165%).
The only decrease was recorded in Greece (-22%).
In the first quarter of 2023, house prices in the EU decreased by -0.7% compared with Q4 2022, while rents increased by 0.9%.
This is the second quarterly decrease in house prices in a row after a -1.4% decrease in Q4 2022.
But Cyprus was among the Member States with the highest increase in house prices on a quarterly basis in Q1.
Compared with the previous quarter, prices decreased in 11 countries.
The highest increases were recorded in Denmark (+2.5 %), Hungary (+2.2 %), Croatia and Cyprus (both +2.0 %).
The largest falls were registered in Luxembourg (-4.1 %), Germany (-3.1%) and Finland (-1.8 %).
Six states showed an annual decrease in house prices in Q1 2023.
The highest increases were recorded in Croatia (+14%), Lithuania (+13.1%) and Bulgaria (+9.5%).
Prices fell in Sweden (-6.9%), Germany (-6.8%), Denmark (-6.2%), Finland (-5.1%), Luxembourg (-1.5 %) and the Netherlands (-0.1%).
Compared with Q1 2022, rents and house prices in the EU increased with a 2.9% rise in rents and a 0.8% increase in house prices.
Rents and House Prices
House prices and rents in the EU followed a similar increasing path between 2010 and the second quarter of 2011.
However, after this quarter, house prices and rents have evolved differently.
While rents increased steadily up to Q1 2023, house prices fluctuated considerably.
After a sharp decline between Q2 2011 and Q1 2013, house prices remained more or less stable between 2013 and 2014.
After a rapid rise in early 2015, house prices increased faster than rents until Q2 2022.
In Q3 2022, house prices increased at the same pace as rents (both +0.7% compared with Q2 2022).
Since Q4 2022, house prices have started to fall, whereas rents continued to increase.
From 2010 until Q1 2023, rents increased by 20% and house prices by 46%.
House prices more than doubled in Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Luxembourg, Czechia and Austria.
When comparing Q1 2023 with 2010, house prices increased more than rents in 18 EU countries.
