First-time homebuyer Sari Kivijärvi recently bought her first apartment, a 63-square-metre flat in Helsinki's Suurmetsä area, for 59,000 euros.
While Kivijärvi said she snagged a deal and that moving into her own place will actually cost her less than renting, fewer young adults are getting on the property ladder, according to a survey by Danske Bank.
The main barrier is no longer high housing prices, but rather uncertainty about the broader economy. At the same time, housing is unusually affordable relative to wages.
Back to the 90s?
An online panel commissioned by Danske Bank and conducted by Taloustutkimus examined the views of 18–39-year-olds on buying and owning a first home.
Thirty-two percent of respondents now say they are considering buying their first home, down from 40 percent in 2020.
Danske Bank's private economist Kaisa Kivipelto said economic uncertainty has not diminished the desire to own a home in Finland, but it has weakened young people's confidence in whether — and when — it is achievable.
Measured against income levels, housing is now statistically inexpensive, according to Danske Bank.
"Current prices correspond roughly to those seen in 1997," she added.
Danske Bank said it expects apartment prices to bottom out this year. For first-time buyers, getting onto the housing ladder is now, relative to income, close to record cheap.
Yle News' All Points North podcast explored risk and opportunity in the Finnish housing market.
