Global | Post-COVID housing prices

The COVID pandemic coincided with a surge in housing prices in several countries, especially some of the richest, despite the fact that at the same time there was an exceptional slump in economic activity that would normally have led to a sharp decline in prices.

Key points

• Key points:
• Data from the US, Australia and the UK, for instance, show sharper increases in housing prices in less populated areas than in more densely populated areas during the pandemic.
• In Spain, homebuyers went for larger homes, driving up prices faster for single-family or detached houses than condominiums or apartments. A similar pattern was seen in other countries, including France, Switzerland and Australia.
• Several statistical analyses conducted by BBVA Research confirm a significant relationship between variables associated with the possibility of remote work and mobility restrictions with a higher growth in house prices compared to apartment prices, and with higher real prices at the country level in 2020 and 2021, while such a relationship did not exist previously.
• This trend could, however, be starting to reverse somewhat in certain countries, such as Canada, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and New Zealand, where prices in real terms plunged in 2022 to pre-pandemic levels if not lower.

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