Wednesday, 11 November 2026
Bucharest’s residential property market recorded a recovery in September and October 2026 following disruptions to property registrations during the summer. Crosspoint Real Estate, the Romanian associate of Savills, forecasts approximately 14,200 residential transactions in the fourth quarter, representing an increase of 23% compared with the same period in 2025.
The improvement follows technical problems caused by a cyberattack affecting Romania’s cadastral systems in July and August, which temporarily prevented the completion of some property transactions. Crosspoint estimates that approximately 5,500 transactions were postponed during this period, contributing to a decline in recorded sales activity over the summer.
In September, 4,563 residential units were sold in Bucharest, an increase of 18.5% compared with September 2025. October recorded 4,857 transactions, up 19.6% year-on-year and the highest monthly total of 2026 so far. Together, the two months accounted for 9,420 transactions, representing annual growth of 19.1%.
Despite the recovery, residential sales remain below last year’s levels. During the first ten months of 2026, Bucharest recorded 34,460 transactions involving individual property units, a decline of 11.3% compared with the corresponding period in 2025. Crosspoint expects stronger activity during the final two months of the year to reduce the annual difference.
Under its central forecast, the consultancy anticipates approximately 43,800 residential transactions for 2026 as a whole, compared with 46,321 in 2025. This would represent an annual decline of approximately 5.4%. A more conservative scenario projects 12,800 transactions in the fourth quarter, which would still be 11% above the corresponding period last year but would result in approximately 42,340 transactions for the full year, an annual decline of around 8.6%.
The projections partly reflect historical patterns in Bucharest’s residential market. Between 2017 and 2025, the fourth quarter recorded the highest transaction volume in five of the nine years examined. December was the busiest individual month in four of those years, providing a basis for Crosspoint’s expectation of stronger activity towards the end of 2026.
Residential construction activity has also increased. According to figures cited by Crosspoint, 10,773 new homes were completed across Bucharest and neighbouring Ilfov County during the first half of 2026, representing growth of 54% compared with the same period in 2025. The consultancy links part of this increase to the timetable for completing transactions eligible for Romania’s former reduced 9% VAT rate.
Under the transitional arrangements, qualifying buyers who had signed preliminary purchase agreements by 31 July 2025 could retain the reduced VAT treatment if their transactions were completed by 31 July 2026, subject to the applicable conditions. Crosspoint considers that this deadline encouraged developers to accelerate project completions and property deliveries during the first half of the year.
Residential prices remained broadly stable during the third quarter compared with the first half of 2026, although they were considerably higher than a year earlier. Crosspoint reported average prices exceeding €2,600 per sq m for newly built homes and approximately €2,300 per sq m for existing properties in Bucharest. Its research indicated that new-home prices were 22% higher than in the third quarter of 2025. The figures were not identified as exclusively asking prices or completed transaction prices.
The latest data indicate that Bucharest’s residential market has regained some of the activity lost during the summer disruption. However, the extent to which postponed transactions account for the subsequent recovery remains an assessment by Crosspoint rather than a separately established measure. The consultancy’s fourth-quarter projections will depend on actual sales recorded in November and December, while higher housing prices and increased residential completions continue to influence market conditions.
