LUXEMBOURG / RankWire.AI / – House prices across the European Union rose 4.7% in the second quarter of 2026 from a year earlier. Rents increased 3.0% over the same period, according to Eurostat. Compared with the first quarter, EU home prices gained 1.2%, while rents rose 0.7%. The latest figures show that both ownership and rental costs continued to move higher across the bloc during the April-to-June period.
The euro area also recorded higher residential property prices during the quarter. House prices climbed 4.0% from the second quarter of 2025 and increased 1.1% from the previous quarter. Annual growth in the euro area eased from 4.6% in the first quarter. Across the wider EU, annual house price growth also slowed, moving down from 5.1% in the first quarter to 4.7% in the second quarter.
Most EU countries reported higher house prices compared with a year earlier. Of the member states with available data, 23 posted annual gains and three recorded declines. Portugal led the increases with a 16.5% rise, followed by Bulgaria at 15.5% and Lithuania at 14.3%. Finland recorded the largest decline at 2.7%. Prices also fell 2.2% in Luxembourg and 0.8% in France during the same annual comparison.
Most EU markets record quarterly house price gains
Quarterly movements also showed broad price increases across national housing markets. House prices rose in 24 EU countries with available data and fell in only two. Lithuania posted the strongest quarterly increase at 5.0%, followed by Bulgaria at 4.5% and Romania at 4.4%. Hungary recorded a 1.4% decline from the first quarter. France was the only other country with a quarterly decrease, with prices down 0.8%.
Another comparison measured second-quarter prices against the average level recorded throughout 2025. On that basis, EU house prices were 4.1% higher, while rents increased 2.6%. Bulgaria recorded the largest house price rise at 14.3%, closely followed by Portugal at 14.2%. Lithuania ranked next with a 12.8% increase. Finland and France recorded declines of 1.5% and 1.4%, respectively, under the same comparison.
Rental costs increase across all member states
Rental prices rose across every EU member state when compared with the 2025 annual average. Romania recorded the largest increase at 41.2%, while Croatia followed with a 22.1% rise. Slovenia posted the third-largest gain at 10.2%. Estonia and Finland recorded the smallest increases, both at 0.1%. Luxembourg rents rose 1.2%, highlighting the wide differences in rental cost movements across the bloc’s national housing markets.
Eurostat tracks residential property prices through its House Price Index, covering both new and existing homes purchased by households. The measure includes flats, detached houses and terraced properties, regardless of their previous ownership or intended use. EU house prices have now recorded quarterly increases since the first quarter of 2024. The next scheduled release will cover the third quarter of 2026 and is due on January 11, 2027.