North Macedonia’s real estate market saw over €265 million spent on buying and renting property between April and June this year, according to data released by the Real Estate Cadastre Registry, which resumed publishing after a five-year hiatus.
Of the total, €112 million was spent solely on apartment purchases, covering more than 7.5 million square meters of property. The registry, which calculates average prices based on signed contracts and preliminary agreements, had not been regularly published since 2020.
Sales were led by apartments with garage spaces, totaling more than €112 million in value. One standout apartment sold for €250,000 for 96 square meters in the city center, equating to €2,700 per square meter. Average prices peaked in Skopje’s central area at over €1,600 per square meter, while the lowest averages were recorded in Strumica, about €1,000 less per square meter.
Experts warn that registry data may be skewed by preliminary agreements for apartments under construction, which were often sold years ago at lower prices, influencing the calculated averages. Market listings currently show prices reaching up to €3,000 per square meter in Skopje.
“The renewed regular publication of the registry, intended to provide citizens with key information on the real estate market, is expected to help stabilize property prices,” said Ivan Zhivkovski, director of the Real Estate Cadastre Agency, in an interview with Radio Free Europe. He noted that investors benefited from the lack of transparency over the past five years, leading to inflated and unrealistic asking prices.
The surge in prices over the past 18–24 months has been particularly pronounced in purchase transactions, Zhivkovski added, highlighting that the registry’s absence indirectly affected market pricing by leaving buyers reliant on speculative information from online portals.
Former chief architect of Skopje and ex-president of the Chamber of Commerce’s construction association, Nikola Velkovski, observed that individual investors, rather than construction companies, are driving new apartment development. Buyers often pay the full amount upfront, even before buildings are completed. Registry data confirm that out of 4,356 property sales in the quarter, 754 were made by investors.
“Individual investor-builders saw the best profit opportunity. Landowners noticed contractors earning significantly and negotiated larger stakes in the construction projects, sometimes up to 40 percent,” Velkovski said.
The rise in property prices is also attributed to the limited availability of construction plots in central Skopje and high-demand areas such as Center, Taftalidže, Karpoš, Vodno, and Aerodrom, where landowners have increased their asking prices.
The Cadastre Registry shows that the municipalities of Center and Karpoš led in overall property transactions, with Aerodrom topping apartment sales, while Bitola led in house sales.
During the three-month period, 676 newly built apartments were sold nationwide, marking a nearly 25 percent decline compared to the first quarter of 2025. However, the registry notes that 25,354 construction pre-registration sheets have been submitted, indicating thousands of apartments under construction that will soon enter the market.
Statistical data show that in the first six months of 2025, municipal authorities approved permits for 4,105 new apartments, including 1,771 units in Skopje.
This surge in market activity signals both high demand and ongoing urban expansion in North Macedonia’s capital and surrounding regions.