Romania ranks fourth in the top of the European countries with the cheapest housing in 2024

Overall, 18 of the 28 countries analyzed recorded increases in average housing prices, the most important being in Poland (+19.3%) and Albania (+16.5%), while notable decreases were recorded in Turkey (-12%), Luxembourg (-3.4%) and the Netherlands (-2.3%). 

Among the EU member countries analyzed by the study, high prices are also recorded in Austria (5,053 EUR/sqm), Portugal (5,049 EUR/sqm), Finland (4,889 EUR/sqm) and Germany (4,800 EUR/sqm), while prices below 2,000 EUR/sqm are recorded only in Greece (1,792 EUR/sqm) and Romania (1,676 EUR/sqm), noting that for Bulgaria and Ireland there is no data on the national average. 

"Residential property prices in Europe continue to reflect a complex interplay between the constraints of the supply of new housing, namely rising construction costs, tighter financing conditions and more complex regulations, and concerns about the economic outlook and the evolution of living standards in the countries analyzed. Romania is among the countries with increasing prices in 2024 amid high demand and the shortage of new dwellings, and the trend continues, at least in the short term, given the VAT increase to 21% for new dwellings (including those that benefited from reduced rate), and urbanism uncertainty mainly in Bucharest. On the other hand, the reignition of inflation keeps financing costs high, making mortgage loans, which have largely supported the market in 2024, less affordable," said Irina Dimitriu, Partner at Reff & Associates | Deloitte Legal and Real Estate Industry Leader at Deloitte Romania.

Luxembourg dominates the ranking of the European cities, with an average price of 11,074 EUR/sqm in the capital city, while Munich ranks second (10,800 EUR/sqm) and Paris third (10,760 EUR/sqm). In Romania, the highest rents are recorded in Cluj-Napoca, 2,770 EUR/sqm, and Brasov respectively (1,897 EUR/sqm), while Bucharest ranks third, with 1,757 EUR/sqm. This places our country among the European states in which the most expensive city is not the capital, alongside Germany, whose ranking is led by Munich, Italy with Milan and Spain with Barcelona ranking first.

In the rental market the ranking is similar - Luxembourg City is first, according to the available data analyzed by the Deloitte study, with an average monthly rent of 43.4 EUR/sqm. The second highest is Paris, with an average rent of 32 EUR/sqm, followed by Dublin with 31.7 EUR/sqm. Other 15 cities in the analyzed countries recorded rents between 20 and 29.9 EUR/sqm (including Barcelona - 29.9 EUR/sqm, Oslo - 27.3 EUR/sqm, Madrid - 27.1 EUR/sqm and Amsterdam - 26.3 EUR/sqm). Among the cities in the EU countries analyzed, the cheapest in terms of rent are Plovdiv, Varna and Sofia in Bulgaria (between 5.7 and 8 EUR/sqm), and Patra in Greece (7 EUR/sqm). In Romania, Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca are ranked with the highest rents among the cities analyzed, with 10.3 EUR/sqm on average per month, both up from the previous year, followed by Brasov, where tenants pay an average of 9.2 EUR/sqm per month (similar to 2023).

"Limited housing supply is also reflected in rising rents, especially in large cities, with development potential above the national average. These areas were also the most active in terms of transactions last year, as well as in the first part of 2025, when activity also increased prior to the new housing VAT rate that came into effect. However, a revival of residential constructions is needed, after more than 20% decrease last year, to ensure the renewal of the housing stock in Romania and, implicitly, to improve the housing conditions for the population", said Marius Vasilescu, Advisory Partner, Deloitte Romania. 

The 14th edition of the Deloitte Property Index study analyzes the evolution of the residential real estate market in 28 countries and 77 cities in 2024. All price statistics collected are converted in euros to ensure comparable results.