More than a third of homes in North Macedonia have no residents

Between 2020 and 2025, a total of 36,281 homes were built in North Macedonia, while in June 2026 alone, construction permits were approved for another 754 homes.

Population census data from 2021 showed that 307,187 apartments were unoccupied. This figure represents 36.6 percent of the total number of homes, meaning that one in every three homes had no permanent residents.

Despite the high number of vacant apartments, the market is not seeing a decline in prices. On the contrary, home prices per square meter continue to rise.

In central Skopje, a new 50-square-meter apartment was sold for 168,000 euros, or around 3,360 euros per square meter. Meanwhile, in Ohrid, a 66-square-meter home was sold for 211,200 euros, equivalent to around 3,200 euros per square meter. These were individual transactions involving the highest prices, not market averages.

The second quarter of 2026 saw 6,221 home sales, an increase of 20.2 percent. By contrast, rental contracts fell by 16.8 percent during the same period./Telegrafi/