Wednesday, 19 August 2026
The Czech rental housing market showed signs of stabilisation in the second quarter of 2026, with rents declining across most major regional cities even as the national average edged higher. The contrasting movement suggests that rental growth is becoming increasingly dependent on individual locations rather than following a uniform national trend.
Average asking rents across the Czech Republic increased by 1.2% compared with the first quarter, reaching CZK 343 per sqm, according to Deloitte’s latest Rent Index. However, meaningful quarterly increases were concentrated in only a small number of regional markets, while rents declined in most of the country’s largest cities.
Pardubice recorded the strongest increase among regional cities, with rents rising 3.3% quarter on quarter to CZK 314 per sqm. Ostrava followed with growth of 2% to CZK 254 per sqm, while Olomouc increased by 1.4% to CZK 296 per sqm. In the Central Bohemian Region, rents moved only marginally higher, increasing 0.6% to CZK 328 per sqm.
Elsewhere, the direction was predominantly downward. Jihlava recorded the largest quarterly decline, with rents falling 3% to CZK 257 per sqm. Ústí nad Labem and Hradec Králové both registered decreases of 2.2%, bringing average rents to CZK 221 and CZK 318 per sqm respectively. Brno, the country’s second-largest city and one of its strongest residential markets, also experienced a correction, with average rents decreasing by 1.5% to CZK 390 per sqm.
Prague remained considerably more expensive than every other market, although the capital also recorded a modest decline following several quarters of increases. Average rents slipped by less than 1% to CZK 462 per sqm. The movement within Prague was far from uniform, however, demonstrating how rental trends can differ considerably even within a single city.
Prague 7 remained the capital’s most expensive district in the Deloitte data, with rents increasing 0.6% to CZK 493 per sqm. Prague 1 followed at CZK 490 per sqm after recording a 3% quarterly decline. Prague 9 moved in the opposite direction, recording one of the capital’s strongest increases, with average rents rising 3.8% to CZK 468 per sqm. Other parts of the city experienced corrections of around 2% or more.
Deloitte does not interpret the capital’s quarterly decline as evidence of a fundamental change in direction. Petr Hána, director of the company’s real estate and construction department, described the movement as a correction following a period of stronger rental growth rather than the beginning of a sustained downward trend.
The latest figures are particularly significant when viewed against the longer-term development of Czech housing costs. Since 2014, rents across the country have more than doubled, according to Deloitte. A single quarter of moderate declines in several cities therefore represents only a limited adjustment following years of substantial increases.
Differences are also emerging between property types. Apartments in prefabricated residential buildings recorded the strongest quarterly rental increase, rising 3.5%. These properties represented almost one quarter of the rental listings covered by the index. Brick-built apartments, which account for almost two-thirds of available rental properties, recorded a much smaller 0.6% increase. New apartments in development projects experienced stronger growth, with rents increasing by 2.2% quarter on quarter.
The figures suggest that affordability may increasingly be influencing tenant behaviour. After years of rising housing costs, households have become more sensitive to monthly expenditure, particularly in markets where rents have already reached high levels. At the same time, the different performance of individual cities indicates that local supply and demand conditions are becoming more important.
For residential investors, the second-quarter results illustrate the importance of looking beyond national averages. A 1.2% increase across the Czech Republic conceals significantly different conditions between individual cities, Prague districts and building categories.
Prague continues to command a substantial rental premium. At CZK 462 per sqm, its average rent is approximately 18% above Brno’s CZK 390 and more than twice the CZK 221 recorded in Ústí nad Labem. Such differences reflect variations in employment, household incomes, housing supply, population movements and local demand.
The cooling recorded across several cities does not necessarily indicate weakening underlying demand. Instead, it may represent a period in which rental prices are consolidating following substantial increases, particularly as tenants encounter limits on how much of their disposable income can be allocated to housing.
For developers and institutional rental investors, the divergence also strengthens the case for increasingly localised investment strategies. Rental growth cannot automatically be assumed even in larger cities, while markets such as Pardubice, Ostrava and Olomouc demonstrated that stronger increases can occur outside Prague and Brno.
The second quarter therefore presents a more balanced Czech rental market than the national headline initially suggests. Average rents remain historically high and increased slightly across the country, but most regional cities experienced some degree of correction. After more than a decade in which Czech rents have more than doubled, location, apartment quality and local affordability are becoming increasingly important determinants of rental performance.
Source: CTK
