Malta Property Deeds Jump 33.8% in August to EUR 407 Million

Malta registered 1,367 final deeds of sale worth 407.3 million euro in August 2026, up 33.8% in number on a year earlier, the National Statistics Office reported.

Malta completed 1,367 final deeds of sale in August 2026, 345 more than in August 2025 and an increase of 33.8%. The value attached to them reached 407.3 million euro, up 29.1% over the same twelve months. The figures come from News Release 159/2026, published by the National Statistics Office on 11 September 2026 with a data cut-off of 2 September.

The forward pipeline moved too, though at a calmer pace. Promise-of-sale agreements, the binding preliminary contracts that precede a Maltese deed, numbered 1,241 in August, 192 more than a year earlier and up 18.3%. Their combined value was 452.6 million euro, an increase of 15.6%.

Volume grew faster than value

The two headline percentages do not match, and the gap is the most informative line in the release. Deeds rose 33.8% by count but only 29.1% by value, which means the average completed transaction in August 2026 was smaller than the one recorded in August 2025. More deals, each of them slightly lighter: that is a market broadening downward through the price ladder rather than one being pulled up by a handful of large sales.

There is a second asymmetry. The 1,241 promise-of-sale agreements carried more money, 452.6 million euro, than the 1,367 completed deeds, at 407.3 million. Fewer contracts, larger average ticket, which points to a pipeline currently being written at higher prices than the one now closing.

Who is buying, and where

Individual buyers dominate both sides of the market but not evenly. They accounted for 1,236 of the final deeds, or 90.4% of the count, yet only 329.8 million euro, or 81.0% of the value. On the promise-of-sale side individuals signed 1,101 agreements, 88.7% of the total. The remainder, corporate and institutional purchasers, is a small share of transactions and a disproportionate share of the money.

The deeds covered 1,504 individual properties. Apartments made up 534 of them, or 35.5%, and garages 364, or 24.2%, a reminder that Maltese deeds routinely bundle ancillary units alongside the dwelling itself. By locality, San Pawl il-Bahar led on final deeds with 91, ahead of Marsaskala on 75 and Birkirkara on 72. The same locality also topped the promise-of-sale list with 110 agreements, followed by Birkirkara on 58 and Haz-Zabbar on 49.

The cost side, on our own numbers

The Glopra snapshot for Malta, dated 7 September 2026, puts the national average at $3,759 per square metre with a gross rental yield of 3.92% and a price-to-income ratio of 10.7. Our stored annual price change is 6.7% and the Bubble Risk score is 62, inside the elevated band.

One figure deserves attention against a 33.8% jump in deeds: round-trip transaction costs in Malta come to roughly 16.0% of the purchase price on our standardised case, the highest level in our European coverage. Effective tax on non-resident rental income is 15%. A gross yield below 4% paired with a transaction cost near 16% means the entry and exit friction, not the annual income, is the dominant variable in any short holding period.

Sources: National Statistics Office Malta, News Release 159/2026, 11 September 2026 https://nso.gov.mt/residential-property-transactions-august-2026/

Market data: Malta