Home ownership in Austria has fallen below the 50% level for the first time in 20 years, new analysis by Wiener Städtische, based on Statistics Austria data, has found.
According to the data, some 47.3% of Austrians now live in owner-occupied homes, compared to more than 50% in 2005.
“Owning one’s own home remains an important life goal for many Austrians,” commented Doris Wendler, CEO of Wiener Städtische. “However, the current figures show that the path to homeownership has become more difficult in light of high real estate prices and financing costs.”
Regional variations
Regional differences were evident across the country – Burgenland recorded the country’s highest home ownership rate at 66.5%, followed by Lower Austria (61.4%), Styria (55.7%) and Vorarlberg (55.5%). Vienna, meanwhile, had the lowest rate, at just 19.3%.
On a year-on-year basis, Carinthia recorded the largest decline, with its home ownership rate falling 2.5 percentage points to 53.1%. Lower Austria (-1.6 percentage points) and Burgenland (-0.9 percentage points) also saw declines, while Tyrol (+0.8 percentage points) and Vorarlberg (+0.3 percentage points) were the only regions to record increases.
Living space
While fewer Austrians now own their own homes, the average living space has increased, with households now occupying an average of 102.2 square metres, approximately six square metres more than two decades ago.
The largest average hones were found in Burgenland, at 124.9 square metres, ahead of Lower Austria (119.1 square metres) and Upper Austria (112.4 square metres). Vienna has the smallest average living space, at 75.4 square metres.
Elsewhere, the data showed that more than a third of people in Austria now live alone – around 39.1% of households consisted of just one person in 2025, the highest level on record. Vienna recorded the highest share of single-person households at 45.5%, followed by Carinthia, Styria and Tyrol, while Burgenland had the lowest proportion at 34.5%.
Wendler added that the combination of rising property values and increasing household contents makes it important for homeowners to regularly review their insurance cover. “The value of a property and its contents has risen significantly in recent years,” she said. “A modern home and contents insurance policy should therefore be reviewed regularly and adapted to your current living situation.” Read more here.
