If you thought that a series of seven interest rate cuts had brought relief, the European comparison effectively brings it back to earth.
High prices, but with a view of Europe
The report from Rankomat.pl and Rentier.io shows that Poland consistently occupies the shameful podium, offering some of the most expensive mortgages in the entire European Union.
This is a real paradox, considering how much our economy aspires to be a modern market leader.
In March, the average interest rate on newly issued obligations was 5.88% in our country. That is more than twice as high as in cheaper Bulgaria, where bank customers pay only 2.45%.
The situation is even worse in Hungary, where the average rate reached 7.91%. Even countries outside the eurozone, such as Czech Republic (4.57%), Denmark (3.89%) or Sweden (2.74%), play in a completely different league. Powers like Germany (3.72%) or France (3.1%) are not even mentioned.
May brought a sharp surge in the fixed-rate mortgage market. The key indicator IRS for a 5-year period, which determines the level of bank offers, shot up on May 19 to 4.79%, reaching the highest reading since March of last year.
The entire positive effect of earlier rate cuts from last year and this year vanished in an instant, devoured by global geopolitical tensions.
Fortunately, after the sudden spike, there was a slight calming, and the current IRS rate is 4.55%. Stock market investors, as well as tired borrowers, hope for stabilization and peace in the Middle East, expecting a quick return to February levels of 3.7%.
This volatility perfectly illustrates how strong local finances react to global macroeconomic shocks.
Source: Rankomat and Rentier.io.
Also read: The real estate market is cracking. "The year 2026 looks like a good time to buy an apartment"
See also: Brutal real estate market data. Apartment sales suddenly fell by almost 20%
Two-day housing market
An interesting and almost schizophrenic split is visible in the latest NBP transaction data for Q1 2026.
In the seven largest agglomerations (Gdańsk, Gdynia, Łódź, Kraków, Poznań, Warsaw, Wrocław), prices finally took a breath. The secondary market average fell to 13,477 PLN per m² (lowest since Q2 2024), and the primary market to 14,245 PLN per m² (lowest since Q3 2024).
Developers are desperately trying to mask these market corrections with free parking spaces or storage units, but real declines are a fact. In Wrocław prices dropped by 7% from Q2 2025 peaks, in Szczecin by 6%, in Opole and Łódź by 5%, and in Kraków and Gdynia by 4%.
The situation is completely different in ten smaller cities such as Białystok, Katowice, Kielce, Lublin, Olsztyn or Rzeszów. There the primary market surged to a historic record, reaching an average of 11,042 PLN per m², and the secondary market was just a step (0.5%) away from the Q3 2025 record.
Bydgoszcz proved to be an absolute phenomenon, where new property prices jumped 21% year-on-year, to 11,406 PLN per m².
This, combined with almost the most expensive mortgages in the EU, paints a very bleak housing landscape for young people, for whom owning a home increasingly feels like an almost unattainable dream.
Completing the picture are April offer data. The average price of new offers in 17 cities rose by about 2.1% month-on-month and 5.0% year-on-year. The most expensive remains Warsaw (17,308 PLN/m²), followed by Kraków (15,800 PLN/m²) and Gdańsk (15,000 PLN/m²), while the cheapest are Częstochowa (6,917 PLN/m²), Sosnowiec (7,695 PLN/m²) and Radom (8,563 PLN/m²).
April brought a powerful revival on the dormant supply side. Sellers went into action and listed 42,000 new, unique offers, which means a jump of 23.2% month-on-month and 5.6% year-on-year.
Although the active listings base increased to 108,000 (+3.1% month-on-month), it remains 7.1% lower than a year ago.
Source: Rankomat and Rentier.io.
Also read: The real estate market is surging. Those looking for an apartment "should know this" - experts say
See also: Real estate no longer drops. In the month, 40,000 sales contracts were terminated, apartments linger on the market for 60 days
Source: Rankomat, Rentier.io.
