Banners reading “apartment for sale” are appearing on an increasing number of apartment blocks and tenement buildings across Polish cities. The secondary housing market is seeing a strong rise in the number of properties put up for sale.
“Sellers can sense demand. Some had waited several months before listing their apartments, not wanting to sell at a loss. When I drive through Poznań, Szczecin or Wrocław, I sometimes see two or three notices about apartments for sale on a single building,” says Mirosław Król, a real estate market expert.
Statistics show that more and more properties are being listed on the secondary market, while at the same time many offers are disappearing.
“Sometimes this is because a property has been sold, and sometimes because the owner prefers to wait for even better conditions to sell. This is a very subjective matter,” the expert adds.
Poles are both selling and buying apartments
“Property for sale”, “Apartment for sale”, “Buy me”, “Ready-to-move-in apartment” and even “Come, see it, live here” — when walking through large cities, such messages are increasingly visible on residential buildings. The secondary market is attracting strong interest, in many cases even greater than the primary market.
“It is estimated that around 30,000–35,000 new housing offers may appear on the market every month. The total number of available offers usually stands at around 140,000–150,000. The largest number is, of course, recorded in agglomerations such as Warsaw and Poznań. Greater supply is coinciding with stronger demand. Looking at the first quarter of 2026, there is no indication that Poles were frightened, for example, by the war in the Middle East, although many experts expected this situation to generate anxiety and delay decisions to buy or sell property,” says Mirosław Król.
According to the expert, apartments usually appear on the secondary market either when the owner has an urgent need to sell — for example because they need cash, are building a house, or are moving to another city or country — or when market activity is strong enough for properties to sell well without large price discounts.
“We are currently seeing a revival and the best situation in many months. Apartments on the secondary market are selling better than new-build units. Sellers, however, must be prepared for differences between asking prices and transaction prices of even more than 10%,” adds Król.
It is difficult to find an offer below PLN 10,000 per square metre
The growing number of offers in large cities means that buyers have a broad choice of apartments on the secondary market. Two- and three-room apartments dominate, usually in buildings that are at least 15 years old. There is also no shortage of apartments in tenement houses, annex buildings or even large-panel housing blocks. Prices, naturally, depend on location and the standard of the property.
“The most expensive markets are Warsaw, Kraków and Tricity. In asking prices, it is generally difficult to find anything below PLN 10,000 per square metre, but after negotiations, transaction prices often fall to as low as PLN 8,000–9,000. One example from before the May holiday period was an apartment in Szczecin listed at PLN 10,400 per square metre, which was eventually bought for PLN 8,900 per square metre. Another example comes from Warsaw, where the asking price was PLN 17,500 per square metre and the transaction price was PLN 16,500. This creates the potential to save tens of thousands of zlotys,” says Mirosław Król.
According to the expert, the second quarter is usually a relatively stable period for the real estate market. However, he notes that supply is clearly increasing.
“This trend will continue until the end of the year if demand keeps pace with supply. Buyer interest remains strong,” he adds.
