Data extracted on 8 April 2025
Planned article update: 8 July 2025
Highlights
In Q4 2024 when compared with the same quarter of 2023, the number of transacted dwellings decreased in 5 out of the 14 EU countries covered.
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This article covers changes in the total number and value of dwellings (both newly built and existing dwellings) sold to households. Quarterly and annual figures on the number and value of transacted dwellings are presented for a subset of EU countries that provided data for the period from 2022 to Q4 2024. A breakdown between the number of transacted newly built and existing dwellings is shown (see Figure 3). Annual changes on the total value of transactions are presented together with house prices for the euro area (see Figure 5).
Quarterly number of transacted dwellings: annual changes
For the 14 EU countries for which data are available (see Figure 1), when comparing the quarterly number of transacted dwellings with the same quarter of the previous year, it can be noticed that:
- In Q4 2024 the number of transacted dwellings decreased in 5 countries, with the largest falls observed in Slovenia (-12.3%) and Ireland (-11.1%). It increased in 9 countries with the highest rises recorded in Luxembourg (+106.1%) and Portugal (+33.4%).
- In Q3 2024 the number of transacted dwellings decreased in 4 countries, with the largest falls observed in Slovenia (-28.4%) and France (-4.9%). It increased in 10 countries with the highest rises recorded in Luxembourg (+46.5%) and Hungary (+23.0%).
- In Q2 2024, the number of transacted dwellings decreased in 5 countries, with the largest falls observed in Slovenia (-19.7%) and France (-14.4%). It increased in 9 countries with the highest rises recorded in Hungary (+38.8%) and Luxembourg (+26.3%).
- In Q1 2024, the number of transacted dwellings decreased in 6 countries, with the largest falls observed in Slovenia (-24.4%) and France (-21.1%). It increased in 8 countries with the highest rises recorded in Cyprus (+42.5%), Hungary (+36.6%) and the Netherlands (+12.3%).
- In Q4 2023, the number of transacted dwellings decreased in 9 countries, with the largest falls observed in Luxembourg (-35.5%) and France (-24.5%). It remained stable in the Netherlands and it increased in Denmark (+40.1%), Cyprus (+20.3%), Bulgaria (+19.1%) and Finland (+8.2%).
Annual rate of change,Q1 2024 to Q4 2024 and Q1 2023 to Q4 2023
Source: Eurostat (prc_hpi_hsnq)
Annual number of transacted dwellings: changes
In 2024, when compared with 2023, the number of transacted dwellings decreased in 4 out of the 14 EU countries for which data are available (see Figure 2). The decreases were observed in Slovenia (-21.2%), France (-9.2%), Ireland (-7.0%) and Finland (-3.3%), while the largest increases were recorded in Luxembourg (47.1%), Hungary (28.9%) and the Netherlands (16.7%).
In 2023, when compared with 2022, the number of transacted dwellings decreased in 13 countries and increased in 3 countries. The largest decreases were observed in Luxembourg (-43.3%), Hungary (-31.4%) and Austria (-27.6%). The increases were recorded in Cyprus (+31.0%), Poland (+3.9%) and Ireland (+0.6%).
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Of the 16 above-mentioned EU countries, 11 provided a breakdown of their transactions by newly built and existing dwellings for 2023 and 2024. In all these countries, the number of transactions for newly built dwellings during this period was lower than that for existing dwellings. This helps to explain why changes in the number of transactions for newly built dwellings had a smaller impact on the overall changes in the total number of transactions compared to changes in the number of transactions for existing dwellings (see Figure 3).
In 2024, when compared with 2023, 4 of the 11 countries covered recorded a decrease in the number of transactions. Among them, 2 countries (Slovenia and Finland) showed a larger drop in transactions for newly built dwellings than for existing dwellings. In France, transactions of existing dwellings fell more than those of newly built dwellings, while in Ireland, transactions of existing dwellings decreased whereas those for newly built dwellings rose.
For newly built dwellings, the number of transactions increased the most in the Netherlands (+54.9%) and Luxembourg (+39.3%) and only decreased in Slovenia, Finland (both -50.8%) and France (-7.8%). For existing dwellings, the largest increase in the number of transactions was observed in Luxembourg (48.1%) and it decreased only in Slovenia (-18.5%), France (-9.4%) and Ireland (-8.8%).
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When considering the average quarterly number of transacted dwellings between 2015 and 2024, seasonal patterns could be observed among the 15 EU countries for which data are available (see Figure 4). The average number of transacted dwellings was highest in the fourth quarter in 10 countries (Ireland, Bulgaria, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Cyprus, Spain, Austria, Portugal and Slovenia), in the second or third quarters in 4 countries (Denmark, Hungary, France and Finland), and in the first quarter only in 1 country (Poland). In 12 of the 15 countries (all except Slovenia, Hungary and Poland), the lowest number of transacted dwellings was observed in the first quarter of the year.
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Annual value of transacted dwellings and house prices: changes
The total value of transacted dwellings is equal to the sum of the transaction prices of all dwellings sold in the respective period. As shown in Figure 5, between 2012 and 2017 and between 2021 and 2023, changes in the total value in the euro area outscored significantly the changes in house prices. This suggests that, in the years when prices decreased, there was a tendency for seeing a contraction in the number of dwellings sold; and when prices increased, the opposite happened. This 'amplification mechanism' has reached peaks in:
- 2012, when prices decreased by -2.0% and the value of transactions by -14.9%,
- 2017, when prices increased by +4.4% and the value of transactions by +15.1%,
- 2021, when prices increased by +7.9% and the value of transactions by +25.9%,
- 2023, when prices decreased by -1.2% and the value of transactions by -16.8%.
In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdown measures in euro area countries led to a drop in the number of transacted dwellings that explained a decrease in the total value of transacted dwellings despite a continuous increase in house prices.
In 2021, the very high increase in house prices (+7.9%) and total value of transacted dwellings (+25.9%) suggests a significant recovery in the number of transactions in 2021 following the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic slowdown in market activity.
In 2022, house prices in the euro area increased again significantly by +7.1% but the total value of transacted dwellings decreased slightly by -0.1% due to a decreasing number of transactions in many countries (as shown in Figure 2). This suggests a market turnaround that was confirmed in 2023.
In 2023, house prices decreased slightly in the euro area (-1.2%) but the total value of transacted dwellings decreased very significantly (-16.8%) due to a significant decrease in the number of transactions in a majority of countries (also as shown in Figure 2). In 2024, house prices increased by 2.0% in the euro area. The total value of transacted dwellings will only be known for the next publication date (8 July 2025).
In 2024, house prices increased by 2.0% in the euro area. The total value of transacted dwellings will only be known for the next publication date (8 July 2025).
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Source: Eurostat (prc_hpi_hsva) and (prc_hpi_a)
Source data for tables and graphs
Data sources
House sales statistics are sent by Member States to Eurostat on a voluntary basis. This explains why only a subset of EU Member States send their data to Eurostat.
Depending on the tables, between 15 and 21 EU Member States, as well as the EFTA country Norway, report data. Data for the United Kingdom is only available until 2019.
Annual and quarterly tables reflecting the number and value of transacted dwellings are available:
- Two annual tables (prc_hpi_hsva and prc_hpi_hsna) show an average annual index (2015=100) and an annual average rate of change.
- Two quarterly tables (prc_hpi_hsvq and prc_hpi_hsnq) show a quarterly index (2015=100), a quarterly rate of change, an annual rate of change and a percentage share of the quarter in the year.
Due to missing countries, the EU (EU27) and euro area (EA20) aggregates are not available in the online tables with house sales statistics, but for the purpose of this publication, in Figure 5, the change in the total annual value of transacted dwellings for the euro area has been estimated based on data available from 15 countries representing about 70% of the euro area weight in 2022 (calculated from the GDP at market prices (based on PPS), price updated with the HPI of the fourth quarter of the countries concerned as available in table prc_hpi_cow).
Figure 5 also shows, for the euro area (EA20), the annual average rate of change of house prices, available in table: prc_hpi_a.
Statistics on house sales and house prices sent by countries cover the same statistical universe: namely the transactions of newly built and existing dwellings (apartments and houses) where the buyer is a household.
Context
In addition to house price statistics, house sales statistics are important to policy makers to have a more complete picture of the residential real estate market.
Explore further
Other articles
Database
- House price and sales index (prc_hpi_inx]
- House sales index of number of transactions (2015=100) - annual data (prc_hpi_hsna)
- House sales index of number of transactions (2015=100) - quarterly data (prc_hpi_hsnq)
- House sales index of value of transactions (2015=100) - annual data (prc_hpi_hsva)
- House sales index of value of transactions (2015=100) - quarterly data (prc_hpi_hsvq)
Thematic section
Methodology
- See national metadata: House price and sales index (ESMS metadata file — prc_hpi_inx_esms)
Legislation
- House sales statistics are sent by countries to Eurostat on a voluntary basis.