Mortgage rates increased in 2025; average rate in Bucharest to reach 49% of average salary

Thus, the average rate of a mortgage loan contracted for a period of 25 years for the purchase of a two-room apartment (50 useful square meters) in Bucharest reached in mid-2025 a share of 47% of the average salary at the national level compared to a level of 44% recorded at the beginning of the year, according to the Ipotecare.ro index of accessibility of contracting a mortgage financing, carried out in collaboration with the lending company SVN Credit Romania.

The increase in the rate/salary ratio recorded in the first six months of the year was mainly driven by the increase in housing prices, while the increase in mortgage interest rates expected for the end of this year will cause the value of the Ipotecare.ro index to increase to 49% in December. This level will be slightly lower compared to that recorded last year and significantly lower than the level of 64% recorded at the beginning of 2023.

The level of the IRCC reference indicator will increase to 6.06% in the last three months of the year, and then decrease again to approximately 5.67% from January 1, 2026 according to SVN calculations based on current data published by the National Bank of Romania (BNR).

In calculating the estimated rate/salary ratio for the end of 2025, an average price for a two-room apartment estimated at 105,000 euros, respectively 2,100 euros per useful square meter, an increase of 18% compared to the end of 2024, was taken into account. The average interest rate for mortgage loans to be granted in December in Bucharest was estimated at 5.95% according to SVN Credit Romania calculations, thus resulting in a monthly rate with an equivalent value of 572 euros.

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At the same time, an average salary of 1,150 euros was estimated for the month of December at the national level – in comparison, the average salary recorded in July 2025 was 1,088 euros according to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INS).

„Even though they are increasing, the level of interest rates charged on the mortgage market is low compared to the inflation rate and the interest rate on the credit facility charged by the Central Bank, which is at 7.5%. Even though real estate prices have increased, and in a context in which the facilities for applying a reduced VAT rate have been eliminated, the local residential market is still affordable at a European level,” commented Alexandru Rădulescu, managing partner of SVN Romania | Credit & Financial Solutions, the exclusive partner of Ipotecare.ro.

The last time the rate / salary ratio registered a value of 49% was in May 2024, when the average interest rate on mortgage loans granted in Bucharest was 6.90% according to SVN Credit calculations based on data from the Romanian banking system. The average value of a two-room apartment was around 85,000 euros, resulting in a rate of 509 euros, while the average net salary at national level had an equivalent value of 1,029 euros.

The accessibility of contracting a mortgage loan is today more than four times better compared to the beginning of 2008, when the average rate of a loan required to buy a two-room apartment in Bucharest was approximately 2.3 times higher compared to the average net salary at national level. It should also be taken into account that the average incomes recorded in Bucharest are approximately 25% higher compared to the national average, which makes the rate/salary ratio actually have a lower value.

In the first six months of 2025, a total of 5.56 billion euros in mortgage loans were granted nationwide, according to NBR data, up 26% compared to the same period last year, but this also includes refinancings, conversions, transfers and restructurings.

The number of houses and apartments sold in the first half of 2025 nationwide was 3.5% lower compared to the same period in 2024, according to statistics from the National Agency for Cadastre and Real Estate Advertising.