Rising energy costs, high inflation and economic uncertainty are preventing more Belgians from buying a second home in the Ardennes. The number of real estate transactions decreased by 11.7% in the first half of 2022 compared to the same period last year.
The figures were released on Thursday by the Royal Federation of Notaries (Fednot) and its Ardennes barometer. In the Ardennes barometer, Fednot has taken a closer look at the twenty municipalities with the largest number of buyers from other provinces.
The results have shown that the total number of real estate transactions has decreased, as it has in the rest of Belgium.
In eleven of the Ardennes municipalities, real estate activity has fallen by more than 10%.
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Between the Ardennes municipalities, the price differences were striking: from €82,500 in Hastière to €255,000 in Libin.
In the first half of 2022, the median price of a house in the Ardennes rose by 5.9% to €180,100. That is a lot lower than in the rest of Belgium: in Wallonia, a house costs €199,000 euros, in Flanders €310,000.
Over the past five years, the median price in the Ardennes has risen by 28.6%, mainly because investors have been very active in the market in recent years.
Flemish buyers are still very active in some municipalities, in particular in Rendeux (63% Flemish buyers), Gedinne (41.2%) and Vresse-sur-Semois (40%). The share of Flemish buyers was lowest in Houyet (3.1%).
