Belgium Luxury Real Estate Sales Hit Record High in 2025
Belgium recorded an all-time high in luxury real estate sales in 2025, with 2,079 properties over €1 million changing hands — a 27.3% increase from 1,633 transactions in the previous year, according to an investigation by RTBF. This marks the first time the country has surpassed the 2,000 annual luxury transaction threshold, driven by a combination of fiscal reforms, shifting buyer demographics, and sustained demand for premium properties.
A Market Divided by Region
Flanders dominated the luxury segment with 1,546 transactions, representing 74.4% of all sales above €1 million. The Brussels-Capital Region recorded 311 transactions (15.0%), while Wallonia posted 222 sales (10.7%). However, Wallonia recorded the fastest growth at +60.9% year-over-year, fueled primarily by a dramatic reduction in registration duties from 12.5% to 3% that took effect on January 1, 2025.
“The reduction in registration duties from 12.5% to 3% in Wallonia not only stimulated overall house and apartment sales but also gave an additional boost to the luxury segment,” said Jean-Marc Delcroix, Managing Partner at Christie’s International Real Estate Brussels, as reported by Forbes Belgium.
Bart Van Delm, Director General of Hillewaere & Christie’s International Real Estate Belgium, described 2025 as “a truly vintage year for the high-end segment, thanks notably to a very strong increase in the number of houses over €1 million sold.”
Knokke-Heist: The Undisputed Capital
The coastal municipality of Knokke-Heist remains in a league of its own, recording 290 luxury transactions — more than all of Wallonia combined. Nearly one in seven luxury properties sold in Belgium was located in this exclusive seaside town. Apartments accounted for 189 of those sales, representing 44% of all luxury apartments sold nationally.
“Knokke-Heist is in a category of its own in our country,” Van Delm told RTBF. “More multi-million properties are sold there than in all of Wallonia and almost as many as in the entire Brussels-Capital Region.”
Despite the volume, median prices in Knokke-Heist showed signs of softening — apartments fell 3.9% and houses dropped 7.3% — suggesting buyers are negotiating more aggressively.
The “Million Triangle” Emerges
A new geographic phenomenon has taken shape around southeast Brussels, forming what experts call the “million triangle.” This contiguous luxury zone connects three poles: Uccle-Ixelles in the Brussels Region, Lasne in Walloon Brabant, and Woluwe-Saint-Pierre-Tervuren straddling Brussels and Flemish Brabant.
“Beyond all provincial and regional borders, three distinct poles are emerging with million-euro properties: Uccle-Ixelles, Lasne, and Woluwe-Saint-Pierre-Tervuren,” Delcroix explained.
Lasne, the top-performing Walloon municipality, doubled its luxury transactions to 44 in 2025. The number of Belgian municipalities recording at least 10 luxury sales expanded from 31 to 44 in a single year, reflecting the market’s broadening geographic footprint.
Who Is Buying?
The profile of luxury buyers in Belgium is more diverse than commonly assumed. Julie Carlier, Head of Kretz & Partners Brussels, described a varied clientele: “On one hand we have an international clientele, whether Eurocrats or expatriates coming to Belgium. But we also have Belgian families, old families, entrepreneurs, liberal professions — in short, a quite varied clientele.”
Contrary to popular perception, French fiscal exiles are no longer the dominant foreign buyer group. “French fiscal exile was before,” Delcroix told RTBF. “Today, taxation has evolved here, some of our French clients are returning to France.” Instead, French buyers are now drawn more by lifestyle factors — space, greenery, and proximity to Paris — than by tax advantages.
A notable emerging trend is the expansion of Flemish buyers into Wallonia. “We have Dutch-speaking Belgians who are buying luxury properties in the Liège region and in the Tournai or Namur areas,” Delcroix noted — a phenomenon that did not exist previously.
Outlook for 2026
Despite geopolitical shocks — including the Israel-US bombings on Iran in late February 2026 — and rising mortgage rates, the luxury market has shown remarkable resilience. Christie’s recorded 50% more luxury transactions in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025.
“The luxury buyer has become more critical due to the geopolitical situation, rising interest rates, and increased cost of living,” Van Delm cautioned, “and correct pricing is crucial for a quick sale.”
As Wallonia’s tax advantage continues to reshape buyer preferences and the “million triangle” expands its influence, Belgium’s luxury real estate market appears poised for continued growth — albeit with more discerning buyers driving harder bargains.