If you live in Flanders, your criteria for a new home are not the same as your counterparts in Brussels and Wallonia.
Can I actually afford this house? That is the number one question everyone in Belgium looking for a home to buy asks themselves. The number one criterium is the price – regardless of where you live.
But after that it gets interesting, as the second priority differs depending on where the buyer lives. In Flanders, homebuyers want to know the energy efficient rating, while in Wallonia, they want to see how big the garden is.
In Brussels, it’s totally different again: Residents of the capital take mobility into consideration after price. The findings are based on a survey among 3,000 homebuyers carried out by real estate platform Zimmo.
In Flanders, the renovation requirements are very tough, and energy prices are high
Marjorie Vanbets, Zimmo
“Mobility is super important to Brusselaars,” says Marjorie Vanbets of Zimmo. “The proximity of public transport is one of their key criteria when looking for a new home. The people of Brussels are really keeping functionality top of mind: enough bedrooms, good transport connections.”
In Flanders, potential buyers want to immediately see that Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). This isn’t because they are more environmentally conscious than their counterparts in Brussels. Rather, it has to do with legislation requiring the energy efficient rating of the home to be D or above within six years of purchase. Brussels also has such legislation, but homes need only reach level E by 2033.
“In Flanders, the renovation requirements are very tough, and energy prices are high,” says Vanbets. “So buyers in Flanders keep this in mind at the moment they are looking for a new place.”
In Wallonia, finally, buyers are used to the great outdoors – and want to see it from their new homes. Big gardens are a big selling point for them; in Luxembourg province, half of all homebuyers put the size of the garden in their top three criteria.