Market data › Locations › Property market North Rhine-Westphalia
Location profile
Property market North Rhine-Westphalia
Location data for North Rhine-Westphalia: demand, construction activity, building land and housing stock as time series.
Data as of: 11 Oct 2026 · updated daily from the time series databases of the sources
Key figures
North Rhine-Westphalia in figures
In North Rhine-Westphalia, at the end of 2025, 17.986.214 people lived there; that is 0,3 % more than five years earlier. The housing stock comprises 9.256.682 dwellings (2024), living space per inhabitant is 46,6 m². In 2023, 42.278 dwellings in new residential buildings were completed, equivalent to 2,4 dwellings per 1.000 inhabitants; in 2023, 35.567 dwellings were approved. The average purchase value of developed building land in 2025 was around 297 €/m² (5.893 sales cases). Disposable income per inhabitant in 2022 was 25.100 €, the unemployment rate in 2025 was 7,8 %.
| Key figure | North Rhine-Westphalia | Trend | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population on 31.12. | 17.986.214 inhabitants | 2025 | |
| Population growth over 5 years | 0,3 % | 2025 | |
| Disposable income per inhabitant | 25.100 € | 2022 | |
| Unemployment rate (all civilian labour force, annual average) | 7,8 % | 2025 | |
| Housing stock (residential and non-residential buildings) | 9.256.682 | 2024 | |
| Dwellings per 1.000 residents | 513 per 1.000 inhabitants | 2024 | |
| Living space per inhabitant | 46,6 m² | 2024 | |
| Living space per dwelling | 90,8 m² | 2024 | |
| Approved dwellings in new residential buildings | 35.567 | 2023 | |
| Completed dwellings in new residential buildings | 42.278 | 2023 | |
| Completed dwellings per 1.000 inhabitants | 2,35 per 1.000 inhabitants | 2023 | |
| Purchase value, developed building land | 297 €/m² | 2025 | |
| Sales cases, developed building land | 5.893 | 2025 |
Demand
Population, income and labour market
Population North Rhine-Westphalia
InhabitantsInhabitants at 31.12. of the respective year (update of the population based on the latest census). The values are persons, not households.
- North Rhine-Westphalia17.986.214 inhabitants2025 · approx. −0,3 % vs. prior year
Population growth over 5 years
%Change in the number of inhabitants compared with five years earlier, in percent. A value of 2,3 % means: 2,3 percent more inhabitants than five years earlier; a negative value means a decline.
- North Rhine-Westphalia0,34 %2025 · −0,15 percentage points vs. prior year
Disposable income per inhabitant
€Disposable income of private households per inhabitant and year in euros, i.e. income after taxes and social contributions including government transfers (national accounts of the Länder). The value is an average per inhabitant and says nothing about individual households.
- North Rhine-Westphalia25.100 €2022 · approx. +5,2 % vs. prior year
Unemployment rate
%Share of unemployed persons in all civilian labour force members in percent, annual average. A value of 3,3 % means: out of 1.000 labour force members, on average 33 are registered as unemployed.
- North Rhine-Westphalia7,80 %2025 · +0,30 percentage points vs. prior year
Supply
Construction activity
Dwellings in newly constructed residential buildings.
Approved and completed dwellings
DwellingsDwellings in newly built residential buildings per year. “Approved” are dwellings with a granted building permit (planned supply); “completed” are dwellings that actually became ready for occupancy. The values are numbers of dwellings, not buildings.
- Approved35.5672023 · approx. −28,9 % vs. prior year
- Completed42.2782023
Completed dwellings by building type
DwellingsDwellings completed in the year in new residential buildings, split into single-family houses (1 dwelling), two-family houses (2 dwellings) and multi-family houses (3 and more dwellings). Dwellings are counted, not buildings.
- Single-family houses9.7002023
- Two-family houses3.3042023
- Multi-family houses29.2742023
Completed dwellings per 1.000 inhabitants
per 1.000 inhabitantsConstruction intensity: completed dwellings in new residential buildings per 1.000 inhabitants. A value of 3,8 means: for every 1.000 inhabitants there are 3,8 new dwellings per year. This makes locations of different sizes comparable.
- North Rhine-Westphalia2,4 per 1.000 inhabitants2023
Approved dwellings per 1.000 inhabitants
per 1.000 inhabitantsConstruction intensity: approved dwellings in new residential buildings per 1.000 inhabitants. A value of 3,8 means: for every 1.000 inhabitants there are 3,8 newly approved dwellings per year. This makes locations of different sizes comparable.
- North Rhine-Westphalia2,0 per 1.000 inhabitants2023 · approx. −29,1 % vs. prior year
Approved dwellings by building type
DwellingsDwellings approved in the year in new residential buildings, split into single-family houses (1 dwelling), two-family houses (2 dwellings) and multi-family houses (3 and more dwellings). Dwellings are counted, not buildings; not every approved project is built.
- Single-family houses6.6692023 · approx. −39,9 % vs. prior year
- Two-family houses2.0282023 · approx. −46,7 % vs. prior year
- Multi-family houses26.8702023 · approx. −23,5 % vs. prior year
Completed living space
1.000 m²Living space of the dwellings completed in the year in new residential buildings, in 1.000 m². A value of 50 means 50.000 m² of living space.
- Living space in new residential buildings4.138,5 1.000 m²2023
Building land
Purchase values for building land
Statistics on purchase values for building land; missing years are blocked by the statistics or have no sales cases.
Purchase value, developed building land
€/m²Average purchase value per m² of the developed building plots sold in the year (statistics on purchase values for building land). The value is not a standard land value: it depends on the location and size of the plots actually sold and therefore fluctuates. Gaps mean: statistically blocked or no sales.
- North Rhine-Westphalia297 €/m²2025
Sales cases, developed building land
NumberNumber of sales of developed building land in the year. The fewer the cases, the less reliable the average purchase value.
- Sales cases5.8932025
Sold area of developed building land
1.000 m²Total area of all developed building plots sold in the year in 1.000 m². A value of 100 means 100.000 m².
- Area5.127,0 1.000 m²2025
Purchase sum, developed building land
€ thousandTotal of all purchase prices of the developed building plots sold in the year in thousand euros. A value of 10.000 means EUR 10 million.
- Purchase sum1.520.949 € thousand2025
Stock
Housing stock
Housing stock
DwellingsStock of dwellings in residential and non-residential buildings at 31.12. of the year (update of the residential building and dwelling stock). Dwellings are counted, not buildings.
- Dwellings9.256.6822024
Residential buildings by size
BuildingsStock of residential buildings at 31.12., classified by the number of dwellings in the building: with 1 dwelling (single-family houses), with 2 dwellings (two-family houses) and with 3 and more dwellings (multi-family houses). The values are buildings, not dwellings: a value of 21.928 for “with 1 dwelling” means 21.928 residential buildings with exactly one dwelling.
- with 1 dwelling2.546.3932024
- with 2 dwellings576.3612024
- with 3 or more dwellings878.3502024
Living space per inhabitant
m²Total living space of the housing stock divided by the number of inhabitants, in m² per inhabitant. A value of 47,6 means: each inhabitant has 47,6 m² of living space available on paper.
- North Rhine-Westphalia46,6 m²2024
Dwellings per 1.000 residents
per 1.000 inhabitantsHousing stock per 1.000 inhabitants (dwelling density). A value of 481 means: there are 1.000 dwellings per 481 inhabitants. Together with population development this shows how tight or relaxed the supply is.
- North Rhine-Westphalia513,3 per 1.000 inhabitants2024
Living space per dwelling
m²Average living space of a dwelling in the stock in m². A value of 98,9 means: a dwelling is 98,9 m² on average.
- North Rhine-Westphalia90,8 m²2024
Other locations
Location profiles at a glance
To the map · Price indices by property type: Residential, Multi-family houses, Office, Retail