Safety and quality of life: Why the Waldviertel continues to attract
In the first half of 2026, the Waldviertel real estate market was much more stable than in previous years. Ongoing economic uncertainties, rising interest rates and a weak economy could dampen this development in the future, but the longing for the Waldviertel as a secure place to live and work remains great. The decisive factor now is to bring together sufficient available properties with interested parties – a task in which municipalities, real estate experts and regional partners are pulling together.
Facts about the Waldviertel real estate market
In the Waldviertel, 1,855 properties with a total value of € 196 million were sold in 2025. This represents a slight increase compared to 2024, but is significantly less than in the boom years of 2021 or 2022. A comparison of the current figures for the first half of 2026 with the same half of the previous year shows a constant trend in the number of transactions (642 after 650 sales) and transaction volume (€ 53 after € 52 million). “The real estate market in the Waldviertel is showing signs of improvement overall. However, a current increase in demand is meeting stagnating supply, especially for new properties,” says Peter Weinberger, Managing Director of Raiffeisen Immobilien in Lower Austria/Vienna/Burgenland, summarising the current situation. This is also reflected in the price development for single-family houses and land. After the price slump in 2023 and 2024, which was primarily due to increased interest rates and stricter lending regulations, the market stabilised and picked up again in 2025. For a single-family home, still the most sought-after type of property in the Waldviertel, you had to pay around € 2,300/m2 in 2025, which corresponds to a significant increase of 27% compared to the previous year (2024: € 1,800/m2). Land prices also climbed from an average of € 20 to € 26 per square metre. Weinberger: “Land prices have thus almost reached the level of the boom year 2022, when a square metre cost up to € 30. There is still room for improvement in house prices, where up to € 2,600 per m2 were paid in the Corona years 2021 and 2022.” Only apartments in the Waldviertel were slightly cheaper in 2025 than in the previous year (€ 2,700/m2), with a price per square metre of around € 2,400.
Heat refugees are drawn to the cool Waldviertel
In the first half of 2026, Raiffeisen Immobilien in the Waldviertel continues to record lively interest in residential properties, accompanied by stable to slightly rising prices. “Single-family homes in particular are in demand. As in the whole of Lower Austria, existing properties in good condition are currently in high demand. However, the corresponding supply is scarce in the Waldviertel. In view of the sharp increase in construction costs, existing houses represent an attractive alternative to new construction for a growing group of customers,” explains Weinberger. Where necessary, used properties are renovated step by step and adapted to the needs of the new owners. The Waldviertel in particular scores here with a wide range of comparatively inexpensive craft businesses. Even during the heat waves of this summer, interest remained at a high level, according to Raiffeisen Immobilien. Weinberger: “People from the conurbations are increasingly rediscovering the climatically more pleasant Waldviertel for themselves. This includes both those interested in a second home and best agers who want to find an attractive place to live here for their next phase of life.” Second homes as well as best-agers are looking for small to medium-sized country houses up to 150/170 m2. Weinberger: “Unfortunately, there are definitely too few of them in good condition in the Waldviertel.”
The migration balance in the Waldviertel continues to be positive
It is now known that the Waldviertel is no longer an emigration region. According to Statistics Austria, 5,285 people moved to the NUTS3 region Waldviertel last year and founded their main residence here. 1,269 of them came from Vienna, 542 from the surrounding area of Vienna. Tyroleans were also there again. And thus 329 more people moved in than left. The districts of Gmünd, Horn, Krems Land and Waidhofen an der Thaya as well as the city of Krems also recorded a positive migration balance viewed individually, with the exception of the district of Zwettl with a slight minus of 97 people. The birth balance shows a different picture. 1,519 births are offset by 2,571 deaths, which leads to a minus of 1,052. The positive migration does not manage to compensate for the strongly negative birth balance and to stop the slight decline in population completely. So there will also be a need for more immigration in the future – and for this we need more real estate supply! As early as 2008, the Interkomm association decided to communicate this attractiveness of the location more intensively under the brand “Living in the Waldviertel – Where life begins anew” and to offer interested people a special housing service. “Immigration is and remains important for the Waldviertel! Therefore, we would like to make the Waldviertel and the attitude to life here visible and show what modern life in the region actually looks like!”, says Interkomm chairman Mayor Patrick Layr from Weitra. Since the start of the project, a total of 88,953 main residences have been founded in the Waldviertel.
In times of multiple crises, people are looking for a safe place to live
Despite the poor economic situation, rising interest rates and great general uncertainty, people continued to create living space in the Waldviertel last year. The reason? “In addition to the still affordable housing and the enormous quality of life, it is the issue of security that convinces people,” says regional developer Josef Wallenberger. This means financial security (affordable housing), job security (jobs), security of supply, quality of life and stability. This is also proven by the statistics, among other things. “The strongest group of people who move in is between 20 and 37 years old and often brings a family with them or would like to start a family in the near future. This is about the question of where one’s own children should grow up or go to school. And the answer is often: In the Waldviertel!” Wallenberger continues.
New forms of living in old houses – solutions to the housing shortage
“The demand for housing in the Waldviertel is significantly greater than the available supply. That is why we are constantly looking for owners who would like to sell or rent out their house or apartment. Our 66 member municipalities are happy to support interested parties,” Interkomm chairman Layr continues. More and more Waldviertel homeowners, for example, are dividing their large single-family homes into several residential units with separate entrances. They stay in the house themselves and rent out the additional apartments. In this way, they create urgently needed living space and generate additional income at the same time. In the course of the renovation, accessibility, energy efficiency and living comfort are often improved. Granny flats also open up new possibilities. They are not only suitable for several generations of a family, but can also offer affordable housing to young people. At the same time, neighbourly relationships are being created, in which smaller support services in everyday life – such as shopping or gardening – can create added value for both sides. “The future of many old houses is not only decided by the building fabric, but also by our ability to rethink housing,” says Josef Wallenberger. The Interkomm association, like Raiffeisen Immobilien, has therefore set itself the goal of connecting owners of empty properties and vacant lots with people who are looking for living space or business premises. In this way, underused or vacant properties and areas are to be made available.
Exclusive Raiffeisen real estate reservation service also in the Waldviertel
Raiffeisen Immobilien is now offering property seekers (not only) in the Waldviertel a new, exclusive pre-registration service with which customers can secure a decisive information advantage: Anyone who registers with Raiffeisen Immobilien will receive individually tailored real estate offers exclusively for 48 hours – even before publication on raiffeisen-immobilien.at or on the major real estate portals. This significantly increases the chances of being the first to discover the dream property without having to constantly observe the market yourself.
