A Norwegian researcher specializing in the housing market thinks Norway may see the strongest price growth since 2017. It’s already been holding up well during the Corona crisis and demand is now predicted to outpace supply.
Homebuilding came to an abrupt halt when the crisis first hit Norway last winter, and closed borders disrupted the arrival of both supplies and construction crews from abroad. There was also a lot of economic uncertainty.
That’s cut into supply at a time when the Norwegian economy is reviving and housing prices are already up 5.4 percent compared to last year at this time. Newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN) reports that Mari Mamre, who’s doing doctoral research on the housing market, thinks prices will rise by another 6 percent next year, and 7.2 percent in Oslo.
Record low interest rates after the central bank cut its key policy rate to zero have also spurred demand, while many Norwegians still have solid household economies. “Activity in the real estate market is very high,” Mamre told DN, “and that says something about how many have strong purchasing power.”
newsinenglish.no staff
