Capital Gains Tax (Effective) in Europe

Europe: Capital gains taxes (%).

In arriving at effective capital gains tax rates, the Global Property Guide makes the following assumptions:

• The property is directly and jointly owned by husband and wife;
• They have owned it for 10 years;
• It is their only source of capital gains in the country
• It has appreciated in value by 100% over the 10 years to sale
• The property was worth US$250,000 or 250,000 at purchase.
• It is not their sole or principal residence.

These assumptions are critical. In many countries a holding period of less than 5 years results in capital gains being taxable. But a longer holding period often results in no capital gains tax being payable. For more details see the Data FAQ

Source: Global Property Guide Research, Contributing Accounting Firms

European statistics. European house price and other economic statistics vary in quality. It is often a surprise to non-Europeans to discover that swathes of this rich, highly developed continent are not covered by good housing statistics.

Northern European countries have generally good house price time-series. In particular, all the Scandinavian countries generate excellent house price statistics. In the Baltics the situation is improving rapidly. Latvia generates an official annual house price time-series, and the realtor Latio publishes a monthly index. Lithuania has no official house price or rents time-series, but the firm Inreal publishes annual prices and rents for Vilnius for a few years. Estonia has high-quality housing statistics, generated by the Statistical Office of Estonia (SOE). Data on house prices, house sales and construction activities, as well as general economics statistics are all available from the SOE.

Central Europe is mixed. German house price statistics are weak. France has very good statistics, the Netherlands has good data, Belgium and Austria have acceptable data. Spain has made giant strides, Portugal is weaker.

Southern Europe tends to have weak statistical data. There is a particular lack of housing statistics in Italy, Greece, and Turkey (though Italy has some private, for-sale, data generators).

Statistics in Eastern Europe are weak. Efforts are being made to change this, for instance Bulgaria began publishing a house price time-series in 2006. Aside from this, the Czech Republic has an official index, and in Poland, REAS Konsulting produces a for-sale index.