Antwerp Property Market and Real Estate Guide

(Antwerp, Antwerpen, Flanders, Belgium)

Around half a million people live in Antwerp, the mostly Flemish-speaking second-city of Belgium. Antwerp is a fascinating hybrid of the traditional and tomorrow, and it is easily distinct from Brussels since it represents a kind of capital for the entire Flanders region, which speaks French and maintains a set of separate traditions.

Property in Antwerp costs much the same as it does in most second-tier cities across Western Europe. Most properties in Antwerp tend to be about a third less expensive than equivalents in Brussels, a larger city which has boomed as the European capital. The old city is perhaps the most expensive place to rent or buy, followed by trendy Quartier Latin, with the freshly redeveloped South (Zuid) being an up and coming place to reside.


Apartments in Antwerp veer between very old high-ceilinged spaces decorated with oil paintings and chandeliers to ultra-modern condominiums enclosed within glass and steel tower blocks. Property prices in Antwerp have remained consistent and steady despite the recent economic downturn, and no particular boom or bust is expected any time soon.

Renting Serviced Apartments

Some of the most beautiful residences in Antwerp are now rented as serviced apartments. Often, they are located in car-free areas like Kromme Elleboogstraat on the River Schelde. Rentals tend to be quite reasonable and a one-month minimum stay and one-month security deposit is standard.

The historical core of Antwerp tends to contain the heaviest concentration of tourist attractions, museums and galleries as well as cafés, bars and restaurants, but naturally, serviced apartments in this area are about a third to two-thirds more expensive than serviced apartments in other areas of the city.

Buying Apartments and Houses

There are no restrictions on non-Belgian residents who want to invest or buy property in Antwerp. Business in Belgium is conducted in the country's two official languages, which are Dutch and French, though in Antwerp French predominates. Almost all business professionals will speak English also.

Many buyers are priced out of property in the old city, but it is possible to find good deals on property in outer areas, or even in the fashionable South (Zuid).

The process of buying property follows these basic steps: a purchase agreement closes the sale and then a ten per cent deposit immediately falls due. Once this and other legalities have been processed, an official deed of sale has to be signed within four months of the purchase agreement.

Real Estate Agents

Antwerp has a very broad range of real estate agents that rent and sell everything from grand old homes to ultra-modern apartments sold off-the-plan. French is the most common language, and leases and mortgages will be drawn up in French, although English is widely spoken too.

Check out the following Antwerp real estate agents:

AG Vespa
Address: Generaal Iemanstraat 55, Antwerp, 2018, Belgium
Tel: +32 3259 2810
Email: info@vespa.antwerpen.be
Website: www.agvespa.be
AG Vespa has a portfolio of on-the-plan apartments in Antwerp's newest, most modern property developments.

Haenen and Partners
Address: Theophiel Roucourtstraat 3-5, Berchen, 2600, Belgium
Tel: +32 3232 1522
Email: info@haenenpartners.com
Website: www.haenenpartners.com
This real estate agency sells and rents some of Antwerp's grandest, oldest homes.

Antwerp Apartments
Address: Kromme Elleboogstraat, Antwerp, Belgium
Tel: +32 3249 4342
Email: xvd@apartmentsantwerp.com
Website: www.apartmentsantwerp.com
Antwerp Apartments lease centrally located and fully furnished serviced apartments for one month or more.