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Albania Housing Market in the First Half of 2026: Prices Stopped Rising, the Coast Sells Fastest

Sep 29, 2026
3 min read

Market Trends

Albania Housing Market in the First Half of 2026: Prices Stopped Rising, the Coast Sells Fastest
Contents

Twice a year the Bank of Albania, with the statistics institute INSTAT, surveys 230 agencies and construction companies whose sales make up 75%–80% of the market's turnover. The results for the first half of 2026 were reported by Monitor on 23 September. Here is what they say, and what they mean if you are choosing a flat in Durrës, Tirana or on the southern coast.

Prices: flat on the half-year, 10% up on the year

The Fisher index of house prices did not move against the second half of 2025. On an annual basis it is up 10%, which is a sharp slowdown: the two halves of 2025 had shown 41.7% and 28% year on year. Tirana went the other way in the short term, up 10% on the half-year and 9% on the year, so the capital was catching up with a rise the rest of the country had already made.

Asking prices are close to what sellers get. Most sales closed at the asking price or up to 5% below it, and larger discounts stayed rare. The stock of unsold homes fell for several half-years in a row.

Time to sell: the coast is the quickest market

AreaMonths to sell, first half of 2026Previous survey
Albania9.99.1
Tirana9.78.1
Coastal areas8.29.9
Other areas10.610.1

The national figure crept up, Tirana slowed markedly, and the coast went the other way: a home by the sea now sells in 8.2 months against 9.9 six months earlier. Agents' assessment of the market was mildly positive overall, a net balance of 15%, and in their words notably more positive for the coast than its long-run average.

Who buys and how they pay

About 58% of the homes and commercial units sold went to buyers with a bank loan; in 34% of those cases the loan covered up to 60% of the price. About 20% of homes were bought by non-residents, about 85% of them citizens of EU countries, and that share has grown for five years running.

What this means for a buyer in 2026

  • Do not pay for the 2025 rise twice. Growth has stalled nationally. Check what flats actually ask today: the Durrës price table and the Tirana price table are rebuilt every hour from live listings, and the asking-price index for Durrës shows how many flats sit in each band.
  • Discounts of more than 5% are rare. Bargain on the flats that have been listed longest, not on new ones; a nine-month average selling time means many sellers are waiting.
  • The coast moves fastest. If you want a specific building in Sarandë or Plazh, a good listing does not stay for long. Prices in Sarandë are thin in our data because few flats are listed there, so treat them as a floor, not a market.
  • More than half of your competition borrows. Bank-financed buyers move slower than cash buyers, and cash still wins a negotiation.

The next survey covers the second half of 2026 and is due in spring 2027. Until then, the live data on apartments for sale in Durrës is the closest thing to a current price.

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Frequently asked questions

Not in the first half of 2026: the Bank of Albania's Fisher index was unchanged against the second half of 2025 and 10% higher than a year earlier, after annual growth of 41.7% and 28% in the two halves of 2025. Tirana still rose 10% on the half-year.