Housing prices fell by 1.1 percent in November across the country, according to figures from the state-owned SBAB and the real estate website Booli.
Housing prices continue to fall, it's the third month in a row, says SBAB's chief economist Robert Boije.
Expected price drop
Apartment prices remained almost unchanged in November, up 0.1 percent. They increased the most in southern Sweden (+0.7 percent) while falling by over 2 percent in northern Sweden. House prices, on the other hand, fell on average by 1.6 percent.
That prices overall are continuing to fall right now was not particularly unexpected, according to Boije.
I think it's quite expected. If you look at how housing prices usually move during a year, it's more of a rule than an exception that prices fall back during the autumn months and all the way to December, he says.
After New Year, prices are expected to point slightly upwards instead.
Many wonder if prices will skyrocket due to the Swedish Central Bank lowering the interest rate and the variable mortgage rate going down. But we don't think so. What primarily drives housing prices is the slightly longer fixed mortgage rates, and they have already gone down. We don't expect them to fall further.
Not taking off
SBAB sees moderately rising housing prices in the coming years, primarily driven by households doing increasingly well.
Despite falling prices in recent months, housing prices have risen by 5 percent since the turn of the year. Apartment prices are up by over 8 percent, while house prices are up by over 3 percent.
