Only a fifth of Brussels residents own their own home

Property ownership in Brussels is far lower than in other areas of Belgium, according to new data from the federal finance ministry.

As of 1 January 2025, only 21.4% of Brussels residents lived in property that they owned, compared to 45% in Flanders and 38% in Wallonia.

In Ghent, one in three residents (33%) owns their flat or house, in Antwerp, Namur and Charleroi the rate is 32%, and 27% of people in Liège have bought their homes.

L’Echo reports that the difference is largely explained by the housing type. In Brussels, 70% of residential properties are apartments, that are far more likely to be
rented, and only 30% are houses. The price of a Brussels apartment is roughly equivalent to that of a house in Wallonia.

The low percentage of people living in their own homes in the capital can also be explained by owners leaving the city for work or moving within Brussels and then renting
out their home.

For example, many young people buy their first property in the capital. But when looking for larger homes they move to the suburbs where prices are lower and there is more housing on offer. They often keep their first flat to rent out.

In general, the proportion of owner-occupiers is higher in “wealthier” municipalities, including Uccle (28%), Auderghem (28.3%), Watermael-Boitsfort (28.6%) and Woluwe-Saint-Pierre (30%).

In other communes the rates are lower, with Saint-Josse (14%), Saint-Gilles (15.9%) and Ixelles (16%), the latter two containing poorer as well as more affluent areas, the communes carrying the lowest owner-occupier rates.