After a long period when house prices were on the increase, prices are now falling in almost half of all Flemish municipalities according to figures from the notary federation Notaris.be. ‘This is a reverse in the trend,’ the notaries say.
Last year, in Flanders the average house cost 367,140 euros and a flat went for 277,338 euros. That’s a slight increase of 2.5 and 2.2 per cent compared to 2023. But notary and spokesman for the notary federation Bart Van Opstal prefers to speak of ‘a stabilisation of prices’ rather than a drop.
‘We are coming out of a long period of price increases. Every time we published figures, we had to announce they had gone up again. And now you see that over 2024, you can speak of a stabilisation of prices. If you zoom in to the municipal level, you see that there are already quite a few municipalities where prices are falling.’ Van Opstal therefore dares to speak of a ‘trend reversal’.
Evolution of house prices
Poor energy performance or EPC certificate scores
However, the figures need to be viewed with care: there is often a very local explanation to local price falls. ‘For example, there are municipalities where either supply or demand is somewhat lower and that impacts on prices. In rural municipalities, house quality is also lower and these are the properties whose prices are falling.’
These are houses with a poor EPC energy score, for example. ‘These are much more difficult to sell nowadays, so buyers are in a stronger position in negotiations,’ Van Opstal notes.
A price decrease or increase is not necessarily tied to a region. ‘You can have situations where, for example, in one municipality prices are rising and in an adjacent municipality prices are falling. So it is more of a patchwork.’
Averages per municipality
The figures per municipality reveal that the East Flemish municipality of Sint-Martens-Latem has regained the title of most expensive municipality in Flanders. With an average house price of 908,530 euros in 2024, Sint-Martens-Latem is the first Flemish municipality to pass the 900,000-euro mark.
House prices in 2024
The West Flemish coastal resort of Knokke-Heist, which was still the most expensive municipality in 2023, was in second place last year with an average price of 895,429 euros for a house. The municipality of Kraainem in Flemish-Brabant followed in third place (678,951 euros).
For flats, however, Knokke-Heist was the most expensive municipality in Flanders last year, with an average price of 667,939 euros. Far behind that are the Antwerp municipalities of Brecht and Kalmthout (357,099 and 355,805 euros).
Flat prices in 2024
Of all the municipalities of which average prices are available for 2024, the West Flemish municipality of Menen is the cheapest. This applies to both a house (average 212,971 euros) and a flat (131,406 euros).
Interest rates set the tone
Which direction will the market take in coming months? ‘That often depends on external factors, for example interest rates,’ says Van Opstal. ‘If these fall, you might get an extra incentive to buy. But if they rise, it becomes more expensive to buy and you get an inhibiting effect.’
‘I personally don't expect to see big swings this year. But I always remain cautious, because Belgian real estate depends, among other things, on what happens internationally.’