In 2024, banks and building societies granted new mortgage loans totaling CZK 228 billion, an 83% increase compared to the previous year. Together with refinanced loans amounting to CZK 47 billion, the total mortgage market reached CZK 275 billion—a significant rise compared to CZK 150 billion in 2023. Even when accounting for rising property prices, the market’s real growth was substantial.
The number of new mortgages rose by 53% to 62,000 in 2024, while the average mortgage amount increased by 20% to CZK 3.7 million. By the end of the year, this figure had nearly reached CZK 3.86 million.
In December 2024, banks granted new mortgages worth CZK 19.7 billion. Compared to November, activity fell by 8%, a decline attributed to seasonal effects during the Christmas period. The average mortgage rate dipped slightly, from 4.85% in November to 4.80%. If the market maintains this December level, the volume of new mortgages could rise to CZK 250 billion in 2025, representing a 10% year-on-year increase.
In December alone, new mortgage loans totaling CZK 19.7 billion were granted, alongside CZK 4.1 billion in refinanced mortgages.
“December showed two distinct phases regarding interest in new mortgages. In the second half of the month, demand dropped significantly due to the Christmas holidays, despite falling interest rates. However, this interest increasingly shifted to early January,” explained Marek Richter, Head of Mortgage Services at Air Bank.
After a one-off increase in August, the volume of refinanced loans (both internally and externally) fell to CZK 4.1 billion in December, similar to mid-year levels. Consequently, the share of refinanced loans in the total mortgage volume decreased slightly to 17%, just above the annual average of 16.9%. This share remains much lower than the 17.2% recorded in 2022–2023 and significantly below the nearly 29% seen in 2020–2021, when households refinanced at a mortgage rate of 2.14%. In December 2024, households refinanced at an average interest rate of 4.72%, notably lower than the previous year’s figure of 5.6%.
The average mortgage interest rate for new loans continued to decline in December, reaching 4.80% (November: 4.85%). This extended the downward trend below the 5% mark, last crossed in July 2024. The December rate was 0.84 percentage points lower than the previous year’s figure of 5.65%, reducing the monthly repayments for mortgage applicants by approximately 2.2% of their net income.
The average interest rate for the full year 2024 stood at 5.07%, down from 5.8% in 2023.
These insights are based on data from the CBA Mortgage Monitor, which analyses data from all domestic banks and building societies providing mortgage loans.
