In 2025, the EU house price-to-income ratio was 6.8% higher than in 2015, meaning that house prices rose relative to household income over the decade. Behind this increase at EU level, national developments varied considerably, with the ratio rising in 17 EU countries and falling in the other 10.
The house price-to-income ratio compares changes in house prices with changes in per capita household income, relative to a base year. It increases when house prices rise faster (or fall more slowly) than income, decreases when they rise more slowly, and remains unchanged when both change at the same rate.
Between 2015 and 2025, Portugal recorded the largest increase in the house price-to-income ratio (+60.8%), followed by the Netherlands (+34.3%), Hungary (+26.5%), Czechia (+25.8%) and Spain (+24.5%).
At the other end, Romania recorded the largest decrease (-42.8%), followed by Finland (-25.2%) and Bulgaria (-16.2%). These figures compare price changes relative to income changes over time; as such, they do not rank countries by how expensive homes are in relation to income levels in absolute terms.
Source dataset: tipsho60
Another way to understand housing affordability is the standardised house price-to-income ratio. It shows whether the ratio of the house price index to the household income is above or below its long-term average since 2000. Data show 2 clear peaks: in 2007, ahead of the global financial crisis, and in 2022. In these years, the house price-to-income ratio stood 7.9% and 7.4% above its long-term average, respectively. Between these peaks, the ratio decreased to 6.4% below its long-term average in 2014, before rising again. After 2022, it fell in 2023 and 2024, then edged back above its long-term average in 2025 (+0.03%).
The standardised house price-to-income ratio helps identify a build-up of potential housing market imbalances over time and is therefore used as an auxiliary indicator in the Macroeconomic Imbalance Procedure (MIP) scoreboard.
Source dataset: tipsho60
The house price-to-income ratio and its standardised version describe one dimension of housing affordability. Other complementary dimensions include the number of years of income needed to buy a dwelling and the cost of financing the purchase through a mortgage. Ongoing housing expenses are covered by other Eurostat indicators, such as the share of housing costs in disposable household income.
