Experts: major change concerning rental prices in Budapest

Since September, the Otthon Start Programme has imposed a stubborn price cap on Budapest’s rental market, potentially holding back rent hikes not only in 2026 but for years to come, according to a statement by the Rentingo lettings platform to MTI on Tuesday.

Tenant demand prices plummeted in August

It is the liveliest the property scene has been since the chaos of COVID. Average rents failed to break through the 250,000-forint “glass ceiling” in the first half of the year, but the summer letting rush was derailed by the announcement of the Otthon Start Programme. Tenant demand prices plummeted in August and have yet to fully recover, while supply swelled this autumn alongside the dip in demand. The market was flooded by flats snapped up for investment using attractive 3% loans, the Hungarian News Agency wrote.

The release notes that after six months of steady erosion in the capital, average asking rents remained firmly below 250,000 forint (EUR 647) by the end of 2025, with tenant bids stabilising at around 220,000 forint. In December, landlords demanded an average of 244,000 forint per rental, while tenants were willing to pay 221,000 forint, narrowing the price gap to just 10%.

Landlords can face fresh headaches in 2027

Rentingo’s analysis predicts that the Otthon Start Programme will remain the dominant force in Budapest’s rental market next year as well, with its 1.5 million forint-per-square-metre cap limiting the upside for resale flats and dampening investor appetite.

With limited prospects for strong price growth, rental yields are expected to take centre stage. However, with rents remaining subdued, only Otthon Start investors are likely to find them attractive. This effectively locks in a lasting supply-side price ceiling that could weigh on landlords for years. On the demand side, election-year income increases should bolster tenants’ purchasing power, particularly in lower income brackets, although securing renters willing to pay more than 250,000 forint is expected to remain a challenge.

Rentingo warns that landlords could face further difficulties in 2027, when a wave of new-build homes from current projects is expected to enter the market, placing additional pressure on already squeezed rents.

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Featured image: FB/Mayor Gergely Karácsony