Interest in the Hungarian property market from abroad has risen sharply from certain Western European countries since Hungary’s 2026 parliamentary election, according to new data from Duna House. However, the company says there is still no sign of a large-scale emigration or return migration wave affecting the housing market.
The real estate firm analysed its own website traffic and market figures from the six weeks following the election and found that the overall market remains stable. Foreign buyers continue to account for roughly 5–7% of the market, broadly unchanged from previous years.
According to the data, 94.2% of traffic to Duna House’s website in the month after the election came from Hungary, while only 5.8% originated from abroad.
“Foreign interest varied significantly by country,” said Péter Szegő, chief analyst at Duna House. While Germany and Austria — traditionally the strongest markets linked to the Hungarian diaspora — showed almost unchanged activity,
interest from the United Kingdom surged by 26%, while traffic from Switzerland jumped by 63% compared to the monthly average of the three months before the election.
Slovakia and Italy also entered the top ten countries showing interest in Hungarian properties.
No repeat of the “exodus narrative”
Duna House noted that similar public discussions emerged after Hungary’s 2022 election, when many speculated about a potential emigration wave. However, market data at the time did not support such claims.
The company said the slowdown in demand seen after the 2022 vote was primarily driven by soaring inflation, the war in Ukraine and steep interest rate hikes rather than political migration.
This time, however, the market environment is markedly different.
Instead of rising borrowing costs suppressing demand, the market is now being shaped by the government’s new Otthon Start Programme and one of the strongest housing price booms of the past decade. Residential property prices rose by approximately 18–21% nationwide last year, while in some quarters annual growth approached 30%.
At the same time, buyers appear to be acting more cautiously following the election. In Budapest, property enquiries fell by 11% during the first post-election month, while the average selling period nationwide increased from 84 to 95 days.
According to Duna House, the market is currently characterised by waiting and more considered decision-making.
Housing supply may struggle with larger return migration
The report also warned that Hungary’s current housing supply would struggle to absorb a major wave of Hungarians moving back home from abroad.
Only around 12,000 new homes were completed nationwide in 2025, marking a decline year-on-year. Although the number of new building permits increased significantly last year and this year, the additional supply is not expected to appear on the market until 2027 or 2028.
The supply of second-hand homes has expanded somewhat, but price caps linked to the Otthon Start Programme continue to limit available stock, particularly in Budapest.
Duna House estimates that a return migration wave involving 10,000–20,000 people annually would place additional upward pressure on prices, especially in Budapest’s mid-range and premium districts, suburban areas around the capital and major university cities.
“Under the current market structure, a strong return migration wave would primarily push prices higher in the short term, particularly in Budapest and premium locations,” Szegő added. “Supply expansion reacts more slowly than demand.”
Airbnb ban reshapes Budapest’s District VI market
One of the most striking developments in Budapest’s city-centre property market this year has been the impact of the Airbnb ban introduced in January in Terézváros, the capital’s District VI.
In just four months, the supply of rental flats in the district increased by 28%, while rental prices edged slightly lower. The number of homes listed for sale rose by 33%, and prices of properties previously optimised for Airbnb rentals fell by around 5%.
According to Duna House, the biggest winners of these changes could be owner-occupiers. Thanks to the Otthon Start Programme, buyers may now gain access to centrally located apartments that were previously dominated by investors targeting short-term rentals.
The tighter regulation of short-term letting and the resulting reshuffling of supply have also slowed — and in some locations completely halted — the rise in rental prices across the district.
