According to Serbian Economist, Montenegro’s long-term residential rental market entered a cooling phase in 2026: following the rapid growth of previous years, oversupply began to shift the balance in favor of tenants.
Currently, studios in Montenegro are offered at an average price of 300–400 euros per month, one-bedroom apartments at 400–800 euros, two-bedroom apartments at 600–1,200 euros, and houses starting at 1,000 euros. In the premium segment, villas and luxury properties can cost from 2,000 to 10,000 euros per month and higher.
The main reasons for the market stagnation are the decrease in the number of foreign residents staying in the country long-term and the accumulated oversupply. According to a representative of a local real estate agency, property owners are increasingly finding that apartments remain vacant longer than they did a year ago, while tenants have more room to negotiate prices and terms.
The market is no longer operating according to the 2022–2024 model, when owners could quickly rent out properties amid an influx of foreigners and limited supply. Now, in a number of locations, tenants are increasingly choosing between several options, securing discounts, or demanding better terms regarding the lease, furnishings, and utility bills.
For Montenegro, this shift is significant not only for the housing sector but also for the broader demand model, which in recent years has relied heavily on the influx of foreigners, relocators, and investors. If the number of long-term tenants continues to decline, some landlords may increasingly switch to short-term rentals or adjust their price expectations downward.
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In Greece, from April 1, 2026, residential and commercial property rentals will only be payable by bank transfer to the landlord’s account. The measure is enshrined in amendments that postpone the launch date of mandatory cashless payments for rent to April 2026 and tighten controls on the declaration of rental income.
According to explanations provided by the Greek media and the regulations they refer to, payments must be made to an IBAN registered to the owner and declared to the AADE tax service. Payments to third-party accounts (relatives, lawyers, trustees, management companies) will not be recognized for tax purposes, and in the case of joint ownership, each co-owner will be required to provide their IBAN for the correct distribution of income.
Failure to comply with the rules will result in financial consequences for all parties to the transaction. Owners lose the standard 5% tax deduction on rental income; tenants lose their entitlement to housing benefits, including annual rent compensation of up to €800; businesses will not be able to count rent as an expense if they pay outside the banking system (as an example, there is a risk of losing €8,400 in deductible expenses per year when renting €700 per month).
The authorities link the innovation to the task of matching declared rental income with bank transactions and reducing the share of “gray” payments in the rental market, with AADE having to set up data collection from payment service providers to monitor compliance with the regime.
The number of requests for long-term house rentals in January 2026 increased by 18% compared to January 2025, while responses for apartments were 4% less than a year earlier, the press service of OLX Real Estate told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to the company, these figures may indicate that Ukrainians prefer to rent houses due to their need for autonomy. At the same time, the level of supply decreased: by 9% in the house segment and by 12% in the apartment segment.
In January 2026, the median price for long-term house rentals across the country increased by 35% compared to January 2025, reaching UAH 35,000.
Compared to January 2025, the record growth rate was recorded in the Mykolaiv region: +81%, to UAH 14,000. In Zaporizhzhia, prices rose by 48% to UAH 10,000, in Kyiv by 28% to UAH 86,300, and in Cherkasy by 25% to UAH 10,000. The median house rental price decreased only in a few regions of western Ukraine, namely in Ivano-Frankivsk region – by 38%, to UAH 10,000, Khmelnytskyi region – by 18%, to UAH 8,250, and Rivne region – by 13%, to UAH 14,000.
Compared to December 2025, the median rental price for houses remained unchanged in most regions, except for Zakarpattia (+5%), Kyiv (+2%) regions, and Kyiv (+7%).
Demand for house rentals in most regions in January 2026 was higher than in January 2025. The number of reviews increased significantly in Zaporizhzhia (+153%), Ivano-Frankivsk (+120%), Kirovohrad (+42%), Zakarpattia (+32%), Rivne (+31%), and Kharkiv (+24%) regions. On the other hand, demand for house rentals fell significantly in Chernihiv (-43%), Mykolaiv (-34%), and Odesa (-16%) regions.
Comparing January 2026 with December 2025, demand in Ukraine increased by 30%. In Kyiv, the number of responses to house rental ads doubled, and in the region, it increased by 40%.
The median price for long-term apartment rentals in Ukraine as a whole in January 2026 was UAH 13,200, which is 10% higher than in January 2025 and 0.1% higher than in December 2025.
The situation is identical across regions: the median cost of renting an apartment is generally higher this year than in January 2025. The most noticeable growth was in the Kharkiv (+26%, to UAH 6,300) and Zakarpattia (+25%, to UAH 21,000) regions. The only decrease was recorded in the Chernihiv region: -7%, to UAH 6.5 thousand.
Comparing January 2026 to December 2025, the median costs remained unchanged across regions, except for the Zakarpattia region, where the price increased by 10%.
There was a noticeable increase in the number of responses to long-term apartment rentals in Zaporizhzhia (+105%) and Kharkiv (+34%) regions.
However, for the most part this year, searchers are less active in responding to apartment rental ads. A decrease in the number of responses was observed in most regions. The most noticeable decrease was in Chernihiv (by 34%), Odesa (by 28%), Mykolaiv (22%), Sumy, and Ternopil regions (by 13%).
In Kyiv and the surrounding region, the decline in demand compared to last year is 10% and 9%, respectively.
In January 2026, compared to December 2025, there was a slight increase in responses in the western region of the country, in Kyiv and the surrounding region – within 5-8%.
The left-wing coalition Sumar has registered an initiative in the Spanish Congress aimed at legalizing the rental market, which provides for a ban on cash payments for rent and the transfer of payments to electronic, traceable channels, according to Spanish media reports.
According to the published details, payments are to be made by bank transfer or other electronic means, and financial institutions servicing such transactions will be required to automatically transfer information to the Spanish tax service (AEAT) to identify undeclared income and strengthen tenant protection by confirming payment with bank statements.
A separate element of the package is a 1% withholding from the rent amount, which the landlord will have to transfer to the AEAT on a monthly basis. The materials emphasize that this levy is also seen as a tool for forming a more accurate indicator of rental price dynamics across regions.
Sumar estimates the scale of tax losses from violations and evasion in the rental income segment at over €12.5 billion per year and proposes to strengthen the resources of the tax service, including the creation of specialized units to detect violations in the real estate market.
For banks, implementing this approach means an increase in the share of payments passing through accounts and, at the same time, an expansion of the role of compliance and data exchange with tax authorities. For the housing market, this could mean an acceleration of the “whitening” of rents and increased price transparency, but the parameters and timing will depend on the initiative passing through parliament.
In Spain, measures to tighten rules in the seasonal rental segment and prevent abuse are being discussed in parallel, with the government having previously announced the preparation of a corresponding package. For comparison, in Greece, a rule will be introduced on January 1, 2026, according to which rent must be paid through registered bank accounts, and cash payments will no longer be accepted.
In January 2026, Ukrzaliznytsia will raise prices for most types of rolling stock, with only the cost of transportation by grain carriers and container platforms remaining unchanged, corresponding to the December rates of UAH 1,250/day and UAH 203/day (excluding VAT), respectively.
According to the tariffs published on the company’s website, in January 2026, compared to December 2025, the cost of tank cars for transporting food products will increase from UAH 738/day to UAH 938/day (excluding VAT), mineral carriers – from 203 UAH/day to 450 UAH/day (excluding VAT), and semi-cars – from 1350 UAH/day to 1450 UAH/day (excluding VAT).
Ballast and cement tankers will increase in price by 100 UAH/day, to 703 UAH/day and 1,300 UAH/day (excluding VAT), respectively.
The cost of fitting platforms will also change: 40-foot platforms will increase from 750 UAH/day to 900 UAH/day (excluding VAT), 60-foot platforms — from 850 to 900 UAH/day, and 80-foot platforms will increase from 1250 to 1450 UAH/day (excluding VAT).
The cost of tanks for transporting liquefied gas will increase by 400 UAH to 603 UAH/day (excluding VAT) in January.
Only flatbed timber trucks will become cheaper by 200 UAH, to 1360 UAH/day (excluding VAT).
Fixed rental rates for shopping mall stores with an area of 50-200 square meters per year have increased by 1.3% to $22.4 in 2025 from $22.1 in 2024, the UTG press service told Interfax-Ukraine.
“Next year, we can expect a slight increase in rent of 2 to 5%, depending on the region. Further growth in shopping center maintenance costs (OPEX) and mandatory additional costs for uninterrupted power supply will undoubtedly increase the tenant’s overall costs. Currently, there are more significant factors that may influence further increases in rent payments. These include: growing demand among tenants to open stores for network development, a decrease in the supply of high-quality space, and the entry of new operators into Ukraine,” commented UTG Director Yevgeniya Loktionova.
She specified that among the factors stimulating the growth of rates, first of all, is the steady increase in demand for high-quality space from retailers.
According to UTG’s research, as of December 2025, the highest fixed rental rates were for kiosks (1-10 sq. m) – from $70 to $250 per sq. m/month (excluding VAT and EP), for fashion galleries – up to $32, fashion department stores – up to $18, grocery supermarkets, cafes, and restaurants – up to $15. (excluding VAT and EP), fashion galleries – up to $32, fashion department stores – up to $18, grocery supermarkets, cafes, restaurants – up to $15, electronics supermarkets – $8, children’s entertainment centers – $6, movie theaters – up to $6 per sq. m per month.
Overall, the market shows cautiously optimistic trends at the end of 2025. Average daily attendance is growing, although pre-war figures have not yet been restored. For example, the regional format is 680 people per 1,000 sq m GLA in 2025, compared to 660 in 2024 and 760 in 2021. The regional format is 318 in 2025, 308 in 2024, and 407 people per 1,000 sq m GLA in 2021.
As of December 2025, 12.8% of space in the capital’s shopping centers was vacant, compared to 13.1% in 2024 and a de facto vacancy rate of 21.4% at the end of 2022. According to UTG estimates, the temporary closure of the Gulliver shopping center had a minor short-term negative effect, with a de facto vacancy rate of 13%.
In terms of formats, the highest vacancy rate was in regional shopping centers – 14.9%, in district shopping centers – 13.9% of space was vacant, in specialized shopping centers – 10.1%, and in district shopping centers – 6.5%.
UTG was founded in 2001. It has developed over 1,300 real estate concepts. Over the years, the company has leased 4.7 million square meters of commercial space in Ukraine.
