Average apartment now costs €414,000 - even though they're getting smaller

The average asking price for an apartment is now €414,600, around €40,000 higher than a year ago, despite the average apartment shrinking in size, according to a new study published Tuesday.

The study, authored by audit firm KPMG and the Malta Development Association, was presented at a national conference on the state of the construction industry and property market.

The study examined more than 18,000 property listings on KPMG’s database to understand how prices have changed.

It found that the average asking price of apartments shot up by a tenth over the past year, now reaching €414,621, compared to €374,070 last year.

The median price also rose, from €285,000 in 2023 to €317,000 this year.

Despite the higher asking price, the study found that “average apartment sizes are decreasing,” with the price per square metre rising by over 14%.

Apartments are not the only types of property to see a sharp price hike; the average penthouse now costs €554,927, 14% more than a year ago, while maisonettes have seen a similar rise to now reach just over €405,000.

Terraced houses also continued to rise, with the average price reaching €735,000.

Property prices have risen by almost €15,000 each year since 2017, the report found. In that time, apartment prices rose by 59%.

“Consequently, a property valued at €200,000 in 2017 would be expected to be worth around €318,000 in 2025,” the report says.

Housing affordability features prominently throughout the study, indicating that while some groups might struggle more than others to find a home they can afford, affordability has dropped for most people.

Young buyers priced out

A young couple in their late 20s earning the minimum wage, with a joint income of €23,000, can only afford 2.2% of properties on the market today, a sharp drop from the 5.7% last year.

Young couples on an average income, jointly earning €51,000, stand a better chance, with 70% of apartments being within their price range. Nevertheless, a year ago, such couples could afford almost 79% of properties, reflecting how the rise in property prices has outpaced that of wages.

Participants in the study raised similar concerns over housing affordability, highlighting how people have become increasingly reliant on donations from their parents to buy a property.

“Access to homeownership is increasingly linked to family wealth rather than solely to income or saving capacity,” the report says, citing comments from its interviewees.

Robert Abela speaking on Tuesday. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

Abela: More people than ever own a home

Addressing the conference, Prime Minister Robert Abela hit out at affordability concerns, arguing that more people than ever now own their homes, with statistics showing that homeownership rates have now increased to 82% .

“The trend is now to say that the Maltese cannot afford to own their own homes, but home ownership rates have increased,” Abela said, arguing that Malta’s economic growth has led to better quality jobs and more income for Maltese youths.

Abela pointed to several government initiatives he argued had helped ease the burden of rising property prices. These include grants for first-time buyers and an equity sharing scheme through which the government jointly funds the purchase of a property.

Together, these schemes have helped 1,000 families become homeowners, Abela said. Tax cuts introduced in successive budgets have also left more money in people’s pockets, he added.

The prime minister said a scheme allowing first- and second-time buyers to pay a lower rate of stamp duty had saved them a collective €69 million - an average of €8,000 each - in the first nine months of 2025.