“It’s just unthinkable to buy new”, breathes Sophie. After searching for two years, Sophie (27) and Benoît (32) have just bought a house on the heights of Namur. “We really focused on houses that had already had some renovations so as not to have to invest more”she explains.
It costs up to €720,000 for a 3-bedroom apartment in the center of Namur. 130 housing units are being built in the Barracks district. Selling prices start at €225,000 for a studio.
“This is the consequence of several elements: the increase in the price of building materials, inflation and the impact that this has in terms of wage costs”, explains Charlotte Mouget, alderwoman for regional planning in Namur.
The new home market is not very accessible, firstly because of soaring prices, but also because of the increase in interest rates which is around 4%. Unless they have inherited or are helped by parents, young people can no longer buy new. And the oldest less and less. The proceeds from the sale of the family home no longer allow you to buy a new apartment, as explained by Renaud Grégoire, spokesman for the federation of notaries.
The price of new apartments in particular has increased significantly.
“Properties from the 70s and 80s are quite difficult to sell. Energy quality is becoming an essential element, even more given the news of recent weeks and on the other hand, you are selling your property, you are hoping to buy an apartment. But the the price of new apartments in particular has increased significantly and so you end up with the sale of your house which is not going to be enough to pay for the beautiful apartment you had your sights on. Generally, you take a neighborhood that you like, you sometimes try to stay in your neighborhood and therefore compare an 80s house with a 3 bedroom apartment, generally, the apartment will be more expensive than the house”, says the spokesperson.
Real estate activity in the first 9 months of the year fell by 1.7% compared to the same period in 2021. During this period, 20% of apartments sold in Belgium were new. We were at 22% in 2021 and 23% in 2017. Over the first 3 quarters of the year, the average price of a new apartment in Belgium was 306,000 euros, up 3.7% compared to the average of 2021.
