Cyprus recorded a 2 per cent rise in house prices in the first quarter of 2025 compared with a year earlier, while rents continued to increase across the island, Eurostat data showed.

Across the European Union, property prices rose 5.7 per cent year-on-year and 1.4 per cent from the previous quarter.

Rents increased 3.2 per cent annually and 0.9 per cent on a quarterly basis, adding to household pressures in many member states.

Portugal posted the strongest annual increase in housing prices at 16.3 per cent, followed by Bulgaria with 15.1 per cent, Croatia 13.1 per cent, Spain 12.3 per cent, Slovakia 12.2 per cent and the Netherlands 10.7 per cent.

Finland was the only EU country to report a decline, with prices falling 1.9 per cent.

In quarterly terms, Cyprus saw a 1.1 per cent rise. Hungary recorded the sharpest growth in the EU at 5.2 per cent, ahead of Portugal at 4.8 per cent and Croatia at 4.5 per cent.

Slovenia registered the largest drop, down 2 per cent, followed by Luxembourg and Finland, both with smaller declines.

Between 2016 and 2021, house prices in the EU outpaced inflation in at least 24 member states.

In 2022 and 2023, higher inflation weighed on the market, with real house prices declining by 7 per cent in 2023 and falling a further 0.5 per cent in 2024.

Even so, housing transactions rebounded last year. Sales rose in 13 of the 17 EU countries with available data, marking the first annual increase since 2021.

Cyprus recorded one of the largest gains, up 31 per cent. Luxembourg posted the steepest rise at 47.1 per cent, followed by Hungary at 34.7 per cent and the Netherlands at 16.7 per cent.

Since 2010, EU house prices have surged 57.9 per cent, while rents climbed 27.8 per cent.

Estonia, Lithuania and Hungary saw the highest rent increases over the past 15 years.

Greece remains the only country where rental prices are still below 2010 levels, despite recent sharp rises.