Private economy

The summer house – a shared tradition in the Nordics

Are you, like many people in the Nordic countries, spending your summer days in a summer house? Whether you are renting, owning or have inherited one, this tradition of escaping to nature is deeply rooted in Nordic culture. But buying and fixing up a second home can be quite expensive.

traditional-scandinavian-beach-house

Did you know there are 1.8 million summer houses across the Nordic countries? This means approximately half of all Nordic residents have access to some type of holiday home as family members, guests or owners.  

We call our second homes different names: “sommerhus” (Danish), “stuga” (Swedish), “hytte” (Norwegian), “mökki” (Finnish), or “sumarbústaður” (Icelandic). Some classic summer house areas are even listed as UNESCO World Heritage sites, such as Gammelstad and Falun in Sweden. 

Most summer houses are owned by Nordic residents. For example, only 6% of summer houses in Sweden are foreign-owned, and many Nordic citizens own summer houses in neighbouring countries. 

Market trends 

When is the peak buying season? According to our own Danish survey, summer house purchases peak from 26 May to 1 June, with an average of 266 houses sold during this week in Denmark alone. 

In Denmark summer house prices are expected to increase by approximately 3.5% in 2025 and by 4% in 2026 (measured from 1 January to 31 December 2025). 

In Norway, 2024 was reported to be a record year for the summer house market, with 20% more summer houses sold than the year before. Prices also increased by 1.2%, according to a report from Norwegian media.  

In Finland, summer house sales peaked during Covid-19 and dropped in 2024. Renovation costs also declined in 2025, according to a report from Finnish media.   

In Sweden the trend was the same, with a peak during Covid-19 – but here it continued into 2024 when 20% more summer houses were sold compared to the year before. A summer house costs approximately SEK 2.2 million in Sweden, and in Norway the average price is NOK 2.9 million.

 

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