House sales in Europe: Which markets are growing, which are declining?

Euronews Business takes a closer look at European housing market trends, focusing on home sales and the factors driving them, Euronews writes.

Home sales in Ireland plummeted in the second quarter of the year compared to the same period in 2024, according to data from Eurostat.

It was one of four EU countries that saw a fall in year-on-year house sales while overall EU home sales posted healthy growth of 10%.

The number of homes, including new builds, sold in Ireland fell by 10%, while sales also dropped in Malta by 6.2%, in Hungary by 5.7%, and in Finland by 5.6%.

There was a mixed picture among the EU countries that recorded increased sales, with annual growth ranging from 2.2% in Denmark to 86.6% in Luxembourg, which has a very small housing market that can see sales rates significantly affected by small changes.

The housing market was also buoyant in Slovenia and Lithuania, up by 34.8% and 24.4% respectively, while Belgium, Portugal, and the Netherlands also saw significant increases.

As noted, the different patterns recorded in European countries are explained by differences in financing conditions, supply and demand.