Romania's property market recently experienced a tax increase through the elimination of the reduced 9% VAT rate for certain new homes and an increase in the standard VAT rate from 19% to 21%. However, official data shows that the number of individual property transactions has not registered a decline following this fiscal change.

In August and September, there were 27,800 transactions total, up 10.5% compared to nearly 25,200 cumulative transactions in May and June, the last two months before the July 2 official announcement about the VAT increase. The number of transactions in August and September was very close to the same period last year (-0.9%).

"After the VAT increase, buyers are slightly more cautious, reflected in Storia data: the number of direct contacts for listings published on the platform decreased by 2%, similar to public data showing a 1% decrease in transactions. On the other hand, interest in housing searches remains high, with listing views 25% higher in August-September 2025 compared to the same period last year," said Monica Dudău, Head of Marketing Real Estate Europe, OLX Group (Storia and OLX Imobiliare in Romania).

July 2025 was atypical for the property market, being the last month buyers of new homes could benefit from the reduced 9% VAT rate and the previous 19% standard rate. In July 2025, there were 17,300 transactions, 17% more than July 2024 and 35% above June 2025 levels. For the first nine months of the year, the number of transactions is very close to last year: over 119,600, down just 0.4%.