site.btaHousing Transactions in Bulgaria and EU Drop in 2023

In 2023, Bulgaria registered a 3.8% decrease in the number of housing transactions (89,880), compared to a 5.9% increase (93,416 transactions) in 2022, according to data released by Eurostat here on Tuesday. The number of housing transactions also decreased in 13 out of the 16 EU countries, compared with 2022, the data show. This marks the second consecutive year that the majority of reporting countries have registered drops in sales. 

The largest decreases in the number of transactions in 2023 were recorded in Luxembourg (-43.3%), Austria (-26.4%), Hungary and Finland (each -24.5%). In contrast, increases were registered in Cyprus (+31.0%), Poland (+3.9%) and Ireland (+0.6%).

The year before, in 2022, 10 out of 16 reporting countries registered decreases in the number of sales. The largest decrease was registered in Denmark (-24.8%), while the number of sales increased the most in Cyprus (+27.4%).

In 2020, the housing market was influenced by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. There was a general drop in housing transactions due to lockdown measures, with only 4 of the 16 EU countries for which data are available registering increases in sales. In 2021, in turn, house sales went up in 14 EU countries.

The data on housing transactions covers the transactions of new and existing dwellings (apartments and houses) where the buyer is a household.