Homeownership continues to become an increasingly distant dream for many residents of the Czech Republic. After a dip in the market, real estate prices have surged once again, with the Czech Republic now among the fastest-growing property markets in the EU.
Fresh data from Eurostat reveals that by the end of last year, Czech real estate prices had climbed rapidly. Experts predict that high demand will drive prices even higher this year, further squeezing potential buyers. According to European statistics, property prices in the Czech Republic grew by 2.4% in the first three months of 2025.
Only Slovakia, Slovenia, Portugal, and Bulgaria saw faster price increases.
The second half of last year marked the end of the downturn in the real estate market. Buyers, eager for cheaper mortgage rates, and institutional investors, seeking to acquire entire buildings for rental purposes, helped fuel this demand.
By the fourth quarter of 2024, both new and older properties were in high demand. However, this spike in interest was not met with adequate supply. Due to low construction activity, few properties were available, and many developers had paused projects as a result of previous declines in demand.
With property prices on the rise, young people, especially those planning to start families, are finding it harder than ever to buy homes. A survey by Ipsos for Komerční banka found that eight out of ten Czechs believe purchasing their own home is out of reach. The steepest price increases have been seen in newly built properties.
For instance, a study by Deloitte revealed that in the fourth quarter of last year, the average price of an apartment in regional cities was 110,100 Czech korunas per square meter. A typical 70-square-meter apartment cost around 7.7 million Czech korunas. This marks a 5.8% increase compared to the previous quarter, and a 15.2% rise year-on-year.
Looking at data from the entire year of 2024, there was a noticeable improvement in public sentiment regarding property purchases, with a surge in pent-up demand from 2023.
Prices are expected to continue climbing this year. Banks have made their own projections: Komerční banka forecasts an average rise of 8.1% in property prices, while the Czech National Bank predicts an increase of 5.7%, though it acknowledges the possibility of higher growth.
The continued interest in purchasing apartments is driven by rising real incomes, lingering demand from previous years, and the urgency to buy property before prices go up even further.
Early data from this year already shows a slight acceleration in price growth. In the first quarter, older apartments ranging from 50 to 80 square meters saw an 18% increase in price, compared to a 16% rise in the fourth quarter of 2024.
