Towards increased professionalization of the residential letting market in Belgium

You can read the press release in Dutch & in French

Brussels, December 12, 2023 - JLL provides an overview of the year 2023 for residential real estate investment in Belgium.

Similar to what has been observed in other segments of the commercial real estate market, 2023 has experienced a shockwave in residential investment across Europe and Belgium. The volume of investment in residential real estate, also known as "Multifamily," declined by 58% on an annual basis in Europe and dropped by 49% in Belgium.

The shock is also evident in financing and returns: with interest rates and financing costs significantly increasing, returns have followed the same trend. In Belgium, net initial yields rose by 50 basis points on an annual basis to 4%. Student housing yields have increased to 4.4% (compared to 4% a year ago), while nursing homes have seen their yields rise by 70 basis points to 4.75%.

Construction costs appear to be stabilizing, although at very high levels. As a result, there has been a 69% annual decline in building permit applications in Belgium, significantly higher than the 33% decline observed in Europe.

In Belgium, the discontinuation of the special 6% VAT regime for new constructions will leave its mark. The 32 municipalities affected will experience a 15% increase in project costs. [...]
Read the complete Press Release in Dutch & in French