The growth in housing prices gained new momentum in January: nationally, prices increased by 1.7 percent, while in Budapest they rose by 2.9 percent compared to the previous month, according to a statement released Tuesday by ingatlan.com.
The statement cited László Balogh, chief economic expert at ingatlan.com, who noted that the latest data project signs of a slowdown compared to previous years. The annual rate of price growth has also moderated: in December 2025, the annual increase stood at 17.7 percent, which declined slightly to 17.5 percent by January 2026. In Budapest, however, the annual pace of price growth accelerated from 20.1 percent to 20.4 percent.
According to the expert, the nationwide slowdown in annual price growth is partly due to a drop of more than a quarter in demand for second-hand homes and houses, which will sooner or later be reflected in prices. At the same time, demand for newly built properties is increasing, although price growth in this segment may be restrained by the Home Start Program’s price cap of 1.5 million forints per square meter.
Based on the property portal’s February data, the supply of homes for sale nationwide expanded by 6.1 percent year-on-year, offering buyers a selection of more than 135,000 listings.
In Budapest, the largest supply continues to be concentrated in District XIII, where apartments are advertised at an average price of 1.62 million forints per square meter. District VI is similarly active, with prices averaging 1.58 million forints per square meter, followed by District VII at 1.5 million forints. District V remains the most expensive, with the median price exceeding 2.04 million forints per square meter.
According to the statement, an abundant supply also characterizes the markets of county seats, where the supply of second-hand residential properties has increased by a total of 36 percent. However, significant price differences remain. Pécs has the largest number of listings, with a median price of 924,000 forints per square meter.
In Debrecen, prices have already reached 1.07 million forints per square meter. Szeged and Győr are close competitors, with average prices of 989,000 forints and 971,000 forints per square meter, respectively.
Salgótarján remains the most affordable county seat, with an average price of 339,000 forints per square meter.
László Balogh added that the expansion in supply combined with the decline in demand for second-hand homes suggests that market balance may gradually improve in favor of buyers. Overall, the pace of housing price growth this year will largely be determined by income and wage growth, as sellers have already priced in all other positive factors in the housing market.
