Welcome to another Real Estate Week — my Monday look back at what happened on the Czech property market, with a focus on Brno and South Moravia.
Fresh quarterly data on home prices came out last week, and for flat prices in Brno and the rest of the country the message is interesting: prices keep rising, but the pace is slowing. And new builds showed a minus sign for the first time since early 2024.
I also cover two topics for landlords — the academic year has started, and in Brno you feel that every autumn. Written plainly, no scare tactics. All the hard numbers and sources are at the end.
Czech flat prices in October 2026: growth is slowing, new builds dipped
On Thursday 1 October the second-quarter data were published. Housing in the Czech Republic was 8.6% more expensive than a year earlier — and that is the third slowdown in a row. Last autumn the figure was close to eleven percent.
What is happening under the surface is more interesting. The market has split in two:
- Existing flats and houses keep rising at the same brisk pace, roughly a tenth a year.
- New builds have almost stalled. They are only a few percent more expensive than a year ago, and compared with the first quarter they actually got slightly cheaper.
Before anyone concludes that developers are cutting prices across the board: according to Petr Dufek, chief economist at Banka CREDITAS, the dip most likely reflects discounts on bulk sales of flats to investors, not lower price lists for ordinary buyers. You may not see it on a specific flat in Brno.
The statistic is national; Brno is not reported separately. From daily practice, though, the picture fits here too: older flats in good locations sell for prices that would have sounded bold a year ago, while new builds leave more room to negotiate than they used to.
What it means for buyers
Slower growth is not a decline. Waiting for older flats to "get cheaper" has not paid off so far — they keep rising. But if you are choosing between an older flat and a new build, this year it is worth at least running the numbers on the new build. The price gap is narrowing and developers are more willing to talk about price, a parking space or fittings.
What it means for sellers
If you are selling an older flat, the market is on your side — demand is spilling over from people priced out of new builds. One caution: ten percent annual growth does not mean you can add ten percent to what your neighbour got last year. Buyers are carrying expensive mortgages and have calculated their limit to the last crown.
Not sure where the realistic price of your flat or house sits today? I am happy to value it based on real completed sales in your neighbourhood.
Czech property prices over 10 years: flats cost three times as much and sell faster
The second story of the week is more of a perspective check. A comparison of asking prices between August 2016 and August 2026 was published, and even for someone who works with these numbers daily they are striking: flats are on average more than three times as expensive, and so are family houses and building plots. Garages rose the most — almost fivefold.
The other half of that story gets less attention: everything sells much faster. Ten years ago a flat stayed on the market for nearly four months on average; today it is about two. For building plots the time dropped from almost a year to four and a half months.
Why I mention it: I regularly meet people who are inheriting or selling after twenty years and still carry the prices from the last time they dealt with property. An outdated idea of the price is the most expensive mistake a seller can make — in both directions. Some sell a plot far below value to the first person who rings the bell. Others wait for a figure the market will not pay.
Student housing in Brno: renting a flat to students
The semester has started and in Brno it shows on every property portal. A new study on student housing puts numbers on it: 65,500 university students study in Brno and 44,100 of them come from other regions. Yet there are only 14,300 beds for them in dormitories and student residences.
In plain terms: roughly three out-of-town students per bed. The rest stay with relatives, commute — or look for a rental. That is why flats near faculties and tram lines in Brno are let within days every September and October.
And it will not change soon. Even if everything under construction and planned across the country were built, student housing capacity would grow by only a few percent.
What it means for flat owners in Brno
Renting to students is steady demand in Brno that is not going away. It has its specifics, though: higher turnover, more wear and tear, and an empty summer unless you set the lease for the full year. If you are considering a buy-to-let, a layout with separate rooms and good public transport to the faculties will do more for your yield than a new kitchen.
Cameras in a rented flat: what a Czech landlord can and cannot do
A related topic that owners ask me about more and more often — cameras. They are cheap, smart and tempting: "at least I will see what is going on in my flat." Lawyers are unanimous here, and it is worth saying clearly.
A camera inside a flat you rent out for living is almost always unlawful. A consent clause in the lease does not fix it — if consent is a condition of getting the lease, it may be considered forced and therefore invalid under GDPR. A hidden camera can end up with the police and with the Czech Office for Personal Data Protection (ÚOOÚ).
A few more things worth knowing beyond the flat itself:
- A smart doorbell or door camera is defensible only if it covers the space directly in front of your own door and does not record continuously. The whole corridor, the lift or the neighbours' doors are a problem.
- An owners' association (SVJ) may install cameras in common areas, but needs a specific reason — thefts, vandalism, unauthorised entry. A general "for security" is not enough, and neither is a majority vote on its own.
- Recordings should generally be kept for no more than 72 hours, and a sign saying "This area is monitored" does not by itself satisfy the duty to inform.
Always discuss your specific situation with a lawyer — this is an overview, not legal advice.
💡 Tip of the week: Want peace of mind as a landlord without cameras? Do a thorough handover protocol with photos — floors, walls, appliances, meter readings — and agree in the lease on a regular inspection of the flat with prior notice, say every six months. It is legal, it does not bother the tenant, and in a dispute over the deposit it will help you more than any recording.
What does it mean for foreigners on the Czech real estate market?
Nothing new specifically for foreigners this week — the same rules apply for Czech, EU and non-EU citizens.
Two of this week's topics are still worth a note if you are an expat or an international student. Around 59,000 foreign students study in the Czech Republic this year — almost 18% of all university students — so the squeeze on dormitory beds affects you directly; start looking for a room in Brno well before the semester. And the camera rules above come from GDPR, so they protect you as a tenant regardless of your citizenship.
The evergreen basics still hold:
- Anyone can buy. Since 2011 there is no restriction based on citizenship or residence for buying flats, houses or land in the Czech Republic. A non-EU citizen with no Czech residence permit can buy a flat in Brno on the same terms as a Czech buyer. Agricultural and forest land has its own rules, so check before you buy.
- Mortgages are a different story. Banks are free to set their own conditions and they do differentiate. EU citizens usually get close to Czech terms; non-EU applicants are often asked for a permanent or long-term residence permit, a longer income history in the Czech Republic, and a bigger deposit. Rates are currently the highest in two years, so compare several banks.
- Income in a foreign currency is a handicap. Czech mortgages are in CZK. If you earn in euros or dollars, banks tend to discount that income and you carry the exchange-rate risk on every instalment.
- Renting works the same for everyone. The Civil Code protects tenants equally. Ask for a written lease, a handover protocol with photos, and a receipt for the deposit.
- Always verify with a Czech lawyer and your bank. Rules on residence, taxation of rental income and the mechanics of escrow accounts change, and your personal situation matters more than any general article. I can recommend people in Brno who work with foreign clients regularly.
For those who like numbers
Czech house price index (HPI, Q2 2026)
- Total: +8.6% year on year, +1.8% quarter on quarter.
- Year-on-year growth in previous quarters: Q3 2025 +10.8%, Q4 2025 +10.3%, Q1 2026 +10.0%.
- New dwellings: +3.4% year on year (a year earlier +14.9%), −0.7% quarter on quarter (the first quarterly decline since Q1 2024).
- Existing dwellings: +10.0% year on year, +2.5% quarter on quarter.
- For comparison, EU average: +4.7% year on year, +1.2% quarter on quarter.
- Source: Eurostat — House price index, table prc_hpi_q (Czech Statistical Office data, updated 1 October 2026).
- Full-year 2026 estimate: flat prices up around 8% on average, which would make flats roughly 44% more expensive than five years ago. Source: Petr Dufek, chief economist, Banka CREDITAS, via Hypoindex.cz; for context also Hypoindex.cz.
Ten years on the property market (asking prices, national average, August 2016 → August 2026)
- Flats: CZK 31,490 → CZK 98,756 per m² (+213.6%); time on market 117 → 63 days.
- Family houses: CZK 14,918 → 49,477 per m² (+231.7%); time on market 199 → 82 days.
- Residential building plots: CZK 830 → 2,622 per m² (+215.9%); time on market 330 → 132 days.
- Garages: CZK 7,230 → 34,092 per m² (+371.5%); time on market 155 → 67 days.
- These are asking prices, not sale prices, and a national average — Brno sits higher.
- Source: data from the Realiťák roku project, CEMAP and Reality.iDNES.cz, via Hypoindex.cz
Student housing (academic year 2025/2026)
- Brno: 65,500 university students, of whom 44,100 come from other regions; student housing capacity 14,300 beds (about 3.1 out-of-region students per bed — my own calculation).
- Prague: 137,700 students, 77,200 from other regions, 27,900 beds.
- Czech Republic: 330,500 students (+5% year on year), 68,100 beds (+0.3%); 89% of capacity is public dormitories. About 1,300 beds under construction and a further 3,050 planned (+6.4% combined). Roughly 59,000 foreign students (+5.5%).
- Average monthly rent per bed: private residences in Prague CZK 13,800, in regional cities CZK 8,600; public dormitories in Prague CZK 6,000, in the regions CZK 4,700.
- Source: Cushman & Wakefield, Student Housing 2026 study, via Hypoindex.cz
Cameras in rental housing
- Recommended retention of recordings: generally up to 72 hours (ÚOOÚ methodology).
- Source: statements by the law firm Spring Walk and the UlovDomov group, via Hypoindex.cz
What did not change this week
- The average offered mortgage rate (Swiss Life Hypoindex) stays at 5.51%. Source: Hypoindex.cz
- Nothing directly affecting the sale, purchase or rental of property was published this week in the Collection of Laws, by the Czech National Bank or by the Financial Administration.
Have a good October. If you are buying, selling or just want to know where you stand on price in Brno or South Moravia, get in touch — the first consultation is always free and commits you to nothing.
Pavel Maloušek, Realiťák Brno