Apartment prices in Macedonia continue to rise in the second quarter

According to data from the National Bank of the Republic of Macedonia, apartment prices rose by 13.3 percent in the second quarter of this year compared with the same period last year. However, the figures show that the pace of growth is slowing, as the annual growth rate of real estate prices was 16.6 percent in the first quarter of this year.

During the past year, apartment prices rose by more than 19.5 percent in the first two quarters, while in the second two quarters, the annual increase in real estate prices exceeded 25 percent.

The apartment price index, which covers only the territory of the city of Skopje and is calculated on the basis of the sale prices of advertised apartments, but not completed sales, recorded an increase in the second quarter of 2026.

Data from the Real Estate Cadastre Agency show that in the first quarter of this year there was a decline in the number of transactions in the real estate market. Compared with the last quarter of last year, in the January-March 2026 period the number of apartments sold fell by 27 percent, while their total financial value dropped by 23 percent.

The number of houses sold also decreased by 23 percent. At the same time, sales of agricultural land and forests fell by 8 percent on a quarterly basis, while the sale of commercial premises declined by 11 percent.

Although construction continues and real estate prices are rising, a paradoxical phenomenon is being observed on the ground: more and more apartments in Skopje remain unoccupied. While the price per square meter is reaching record levels, some of the new dwellings are being used neither for housing nor for rent.

According to experts, this is linked to several factors, including the purchase of apartments as a form of investment, or “keeping money in concrete,” expectations of further price increases, high rents that drive away tenants, as well as uncertainty over long-term renting. Under these circumstances, many owners choose not to rent out their properties at all.

In May, household loans recorded monthly growth of 1.3% and annual growth of 12.0%, driven by the expansion of lending in both denars and foreign currency, with the greater impact coming from loans denominated in denars.

According to the purpose of loans approved to individuals, in May the two most common categories, consumer loans and housing loans, posted monthly growth of 1.1% and 1.4% respectively, while the annual growth rates were 11.2% and 16.3%.

In the past six years, from May 2020 to May 2026, housing loans have more than doubled, from 52,959 million denars to 116.017 million denars, or from more than 800 million euros to nearly 2 billion euros. (koha.mk)