The property barometer published by the Federation of Notaries (Fednot) is out! The second quarter results reveal a new record in real-estate transactions and rising prices for houses and apartments in Brussels.
More and more real-estate transactions
Now more than ever, owning property appeals to Belgians! In fact, according the notaries’ barometer, the period from April to June 2019 is the second quarter to record the most real-estate transactions since the barometer was created in 2007. Compared with the same period in 2018, this represents a 7.5% increase or 6,400 additional transactions. According to notary Renaud Grégoire, this intensive activity is largely due to “extremely low mortgage rates as well as the weakness of alternative sources of income”.
Walloon Brabant, Hainaut and the province of Liège lead the way
In Wallonia, the figures vary significantly from one province to another. The most spectacular increase can be seen in Walloon Brabant, with 16.8%, followed by Hainaut (9.2%) and the province of Liège (7%). The second quarter of 2019 is a true record and the period during which Walloon Brabant and the province of Liège registered the most transactions since these records began. Unlike the provinces of Luxembourg and Namur, which saw falls of 0.6% and 1.1% respectively, compared with the second quarter of 2018.
A house in Belgium costs € 260,145 on average
The barometer also shows an increase of 3.7% in the average price of a house in Belgium in one year. That represents an additional cost of around € 10,000 compared with the same period last year. In concrete terms, during the first six months of 2019 the average price of a house rose by 1.6% in Flanders, 2.8% in Wallonia and 3.5% in Brussels. Once again, the highest figure is to be found in the Brussels-Capital Region. With an average cost 82.8% higher than the Belgian average, you will need to allow around € 469,597 to purchase a house here.