According to a report by idealista, there are fewer building permits being awarded in the European Union. Eurostat data confirms this reality: “In 2022, building permits (in terms of usable area) decreased by almost 5% in the EU to 386.7 million m2 (in absolute terms, 18.1 million m2)”.

This reality is also mirrored in the residential market, as fewer permits were awarded to build houses in the EU between 2021 and 2022. “In terms of number of dwellings, permits also decreased by 4% (-79,100 dwellings) in the increase of 16% in 2021”, they also explain in the document.

Building permits (in terms of floor space) fell in 15 of the 27 EU Member States in 2022 compared to the previous year. The biggest drop of all was recorded in Luxembourg (-28%) and the smallest in Romania (-1%).

In the remaining nine EU countries there was an increase in building permits, with Malta (+29%), Spain (+28%) and Croatia (+21%) recording the most significant increases. Licenses also rose in Slovenia (+17%), Bulgaria (+12%), Italy (+8%), Hungary (+7%), Portugal (+3%) and France (+2%).