Real estate prices: documentation of statistics

The price statistics on old single-family houses and single-family house plots are based on the National Land Survey’s purchase price register which contains all real estate transactions. The statistics do not include single-family houses located on rented plots.

The data for new single-family houses are based on the Building Cost Index and the development of prices of professional and own-account construction. Prices are measured by means of materials, wages and salaries, and prefabricated houses, and connection and official charges.

The statistical unit for real estate prices is an old single-family house, single-family house plot or a new single-family house.

The population of the statistics on real estate prices regarding old single-family houses and house plots comprises all real estate transactions made in Finland.

Real estate prices are published on the level of the whole country, excluding Åland.

Data on old single-family houses and plots are available with different classifications starting from 1985.

Data on new single-family houses are available starting from 2009.

For old single-family houses and plots three base periods are used in the statistics: 2020=100, 2015=100, 2010=100 and 1985=100. The base year 2010 and 2022 is used for the price index of new single-family houses.

The measurement units used in the statistics are the index point figure, percentage change, price per square metre in euros, floor area in square metres and data on the number of transactions.

In quarterly statistics the reference period is a quarter and in annual statistics a calendar year.

The regional classification used in the statistics on single-family houses and single-family house plots contains data on the following areas: Mainland Finland, Greater Helsinki, rest of Mainland Finland without Greater Helsinki, satellite municipalities, and major regions Southern Finland, Western Finland, Eastern Finland and Northern Finland. Data are also calculated classified by population. 

The Greater Helsinki area includes Helsinki, Espoo-Kauniainen and Vantaa. The satellite municipalities are Hyvinkää, Järvenpää, Kerava, Kirkkonummi, Nurmijärvi, Riihimäki, Sipoo, Tuusula and Vihti. Åland is not included in the statistics. Major cities include Helsinki, Espoo-Kauniainen, Vantaa, Tampere, Turku and Oulu.

Åland is excluded from the statistics.

For the index of new single-family houses, data are published only on the level of Mainland Finland.

The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. The Statistics Act contains provisions on collection of data, processing of data and the obligation to provide data. Besides the Statistics Act, the General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act and the Act on the Openness of Government Activities are applied to processing of data when producing statistics.

Statistics Finland compiles statistics in line with the EU’s regulations applicable to statistics, which steer the statistical agencies of all EU Member States.

Further information: Statistical legislation

The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. The Statistics Act contains provisions on collection of data, processing of data and the obligation to provide data. Besides the Statistics Act, the Data Protection Act and the Act on the Openness of Government Activities are applied to processing of data when producing statistics. 

Statistics Finland compiles statistics in line with the EU’s regulations applicable to statistics, which steer the statistical agencies of all EU Member States.  

Further information: Statistical legislation

The data of the statistics are published on the home page of the statistics according to the release calendar.

The statistics on real estate prices are based on the transaction prices in the National Land Survey's purchase price register. In addition, background information is searched for the transaction price data from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency’s Building and Dwelling Register.

For the price index for newly built single-family houses, prices are collected on materials, prefabricated houses, and connection and official charges, and on planning and monitoring costs. The data are supplied by Rakennustutkimus RTS Oy. In addition, the price index uses the building cost index of residential detached houses and the volume index of newbuilding for detached houses.

The transaction prices in the National Land Survey's purchase price register are submitted to Statistics Finland monthly.

Rakennustutkimus RTS Oy supplies the data to Statistics Finland quarterly.

Old single-family houses and plots 

The data of the statistics on real estate prices are formed from the purchase price register of the National Land Survey by including transactions of single-family houses and single-family plots. Real estate transactions are linked to the Digital and Population Data Services Agency’s Building and Dwelling Register. After this the regional classification is added to the data. The validation of the data is performed by adding price limits to the data and by adding so-called deletion codes to deviating observations by floor area, year of construction and area. The data are then saved.

After the data are processed, the lowest level indices or micro indices are calculated. The micro index has two different parts, price change unadjusted for quality and a quality adjustment factor. Price change unadjusted for quality is the geometric mean of the prices per square metre of the previous year's micro category divided by the geometric mean of the prices per square metre of the previous quarter. Because this change also includes changes caused by qualitative changes in transactions, a quality adjustment factor must be included.

In practice, the quality adjustment factor is the ratio of the geometric means of the present period calculated with the regression model and the observation-specific forecast prices of the previous year in the micro category. The regression model produces a forecast price for an observation with certain characteristics in the base year (or in other words for the price comparison period). When the forecast price is calculated both with the characteristics of the present time and with the features of the previous period, the ratio of the mean of these prediction prices in the micro category indicates the price change in the micro category due to differences in the characteristics. When the geometric mean price of the previous period is adjusted with this ratio, a quality-adjusted price change is obtained from the previous period to the current period.   

Index is calculated with Log-Laspeyres index formula. Distribution figures, lower quartiles, medians and upper quartiles are also calculated for both prices and floor areas. In addition, average prices and average areas are calculated. Average prices are calculated as an arithmetic mean weighted by the floor areas of the quarter. 

Finally, the indices of old base years are chained forward. It should be noted in the chaining of old series that methodological changes are big and have a clear effect on the obtained results. If we look at annual changes in the 1985=100 series in 2016 to 2017 for example, we obtain different results compared to the annual changes in the 2015=100 series.

New single-family houses

The data of Rakennustutkimus RTS Oy used in the calculation of the price index for newly built single-family houses for the share of own-account construction are processed and entered into the production system. After this, the data of the volume index of newbuilding and the building cost index are retrieved.

The price index is calculated with Laspeyres index formula by weighting together micro indices calculated for different building modes and constructors: on-site or prefabricated, professional or own-account construction.

When viewing regional price indices of old single-family houses and plots, attention should be paid to the number of transactions in the area. If only a few transactions are made in the area, a few deviating cases can have a significant effect on the development of the index in the area. Then it would be advisable to examine longer term development instead of quarterly changes. It should also be noted that the statistics do not include single-family houses on rented plots.

The average prices of the statistics vary differently from the price index, because the price index takes into account changes in the distribution and their effects on prices regarding the characteristics of single-family houses and plots sold at different points in time, such as year of completion, floor area and location. The price index and average prices are both, depending on the situation, usable indicators. 

The price index endeavours to measure as accurately as possible how much more/less an average single-family house or plot costs now than it did before. The average price, in turn, describes the prevailing price level for sold dwellings without considering whether they are older, newer, larger or smaller than dwellings sold before.

Quality management requires comprehensive guidance of activities. The European Statistics Code of Practice forms the basis for the common quality system of the European Statistical System.

The Code of Practice is based on 16 principles that concern statistical authorities' independence, accountability and the quality of the processes and data to be published.

The principles are in line with the Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics approved by the United Nations Statistics Commission and are supplementary to them. The quality criteria of Official Statistics of Finland are compatible with the European Statistics Code of Practice.

Further information: European Statistics Code of Practice | Statistics Finland and Recommendations of the Advisory Board of Official Statistics of Finland | Statistics Finland

The data are checked before the statistics are calculated where observations with clearly deviating prices or areas or otherwise deficient are removed from the calculations.

The statistics on real estate prices are published quarterly approximately 7 weeks from the end of a quarter. The released data are final data. Annual data are released in connection with the publication for the fourth quarter.

The data have been published on the days indicated in the release calendar.

The statistics are produced using the major regions according to the EU's regional classification system, NUTS2 (classification that entered into force on 11 July 2003), where Northern Finland and Eastern Finland are separate areas. In addition, the classification used is Mainland Finland, Greater Helsinki, Rest of Finland and Satellite municipalities and the regional division based on population.

For old single-family houses and plots, data are available starting from 1995. Data on the index of real estate prices 1985=100 are available with a more detailed classification between 1985 and 2009. In addition, there is a long time series on the index of real estate prices 1985=100 on the level of Mainland Finland, Greater Helsinki and the rest of Finland. This time series is always chained with the newest index, whereby the changes in the index correspond to the changes in the newest index. In connection with changing the base year, the methodological changes made are also reflected in the annual changes of the long time series.

The statistical model, review procedures, weight structure and classifications used in the calculation of old single-family houses and single-family house plots were renewed in 2017. The base year of the index was changed into 2015=100. Due to the changes, retrospectively calculated series for 2015 and 2016 differ from the previously published indices (2005=100 series, 1985=100 series).

In 2023, the weight structure, regional classification and base year used in the price index of old single-family houses were remodelled. The new base year is 2020=100. In addition, the calculation method of the index was reviewed so that the weights and the quality standardisation coefficients of the hedonic method will in future be updated yearly, which improves the quality of the index.

New categories in the regional classification are the six largest towns and the whole country exclusive of the six largest towns. The previously published base years (2015=100, 2010=100, 1985=100) for the index of old single-family houses and plots are continued by chaining them with changes according to the 2020=100 indices starting from the first quarter of 2023.

The product and weight structure was renewed in the price index of newly built single-family houses in 2023. The new base year is 2022=100. The new index is published on a more detailed level than before. The so-called prefabricated house index and its sub-indices are published especially as new.

The most significant change in the weight structure of the price index of newly built single-family houses can be seen in the clear growth in professional construction of single-family houses relative to own-account building.

The uniform regional classification and processing rules are applied as far as possible to the statistics on housing prices.

The National Land Survey of Finland publishes the purchase price statistics based on purchase price data: Statistical information on real estate transactions

The main difference between the price index compiled by Statistics Finland and the National Land Survey’s purchase price statistics is that the purchase price statistics present primarily the distribution data of transactions and prices at a given period, while the price index focuses on measuring changes in prices from one period to another.

The price index takes account of price differences caused by real estate properties sold in different periods and their effect is removed in the index calculation. The numbers released in the statistics differ for single-family house plots from the National Land Survey's purchase price register due to different selection rules.

The data of the quarterly and annual releases are consistent with each other. Annual data are averages of the data for the quarters of the year in question.

Data on old single-family houses and plots differ from each other as concerns regional classifications, for example. Due to the small number of plot observations, population categories were combined compared to the categories of single-family houses: there are four population categories in the statistics on single-family houses and three in the statistics on plots.

Statistics Finland publishes new statistical data at 8 am on weekdays in its web service. The release times of statistics are given in advance in the release calendar available in the web service. The data become public after they have been updated in the web service.

Further information: Publication principles for statistics at Statistics Finland

Statistics Finland's release calendar: Future publications

Future publications of the statistics can be found on the page of the statistics at: Future publications of the statistics

The data are released to all users at the same time. Statistical data may be processed at Statistics Finland and information on them may be given before release only by persons involved in the production of the statistics concerned or who need the data of the statistics concerned in their own work before the data are published.

Further information: Publication principles for statistics

Unless otherwise specifically stated in connection with the product, data or service concerned, Statistics Finland is the producer and copyright owner of the data. The terms of use for statistical data.

The statistics on real estate prices are published quarterly approximately 7 weeks from the end of a quarter. Annual data are released in connection with the publication for the last quarter. The released data are final data.

The release is published quarterly on the home page of the statistics.

The statistics do not have any other publications. The data of the statistics on real estate prices are published as part of the owner-occupied housing prices indices published by Eurostat.

The database tables of the statistics can be found in the StatFin database.  

Unit-level data of the statistics are used only for producing the statistics and others than producers of statistics do not have access to unit-level data.

In addition to quarterly statistics on real estate prices, Statistics Finland publishes monthly, quarterly and annual statistics on dwellings in housing companies. The prices of dwellings in housing companies and single-family houses are included in the owner-occupied housing price indices delivered to Eurostat (Commission Regulation (EU) No 93/2013). The owner-occupied housing price indices are published on Eurostat's website.

The National Land Survey also publishes data on real estate transactions. Price data on single-family houses are part of the indices of owner-occupied housing prices that Statistics Finland delivers to Eurostat.

The data protection of data collected for statistical purposes is guaranteed. The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. Alongside the Statistics Act, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation and the Finnish Data Protection Act are applied to the processing of personal data. Provisions on the confidentiality of data collected for statistical purposes are laid down in the Act on the Openness of Government Activities.

The data are processed only by persons who need the data in their work. The use of data is restricted by usage rights. All persons employed by Statistics Finland have signed a pledge of secrecy, where they have obliged to keep secret the data prescribed as confidential by virtue of the Statistics Act or the Act on the Openness of Government Activities.

Further information: Data protection | Statistics Finland (stat.fi)

The data materials are protected at all stages of processing with the necessary physical and technical solutions. Unit-specific data of the calculation data must be kept undisclosed. Data are handled only by persons who need the data in their work. The use of data is restricted by usage rights. The phases of the statistical production process produce an end result that does not enable identification of individual data producers. All employees have signed a pledge of secrecy, where they have obliged to keep secret the data prescribed as confidential by virtue of the Statistics Act or the Act on the Openness of Government Activities. The data of the statistics are published on a less detailed level, so the data protection of individual respondents is not endangered. 

The statistics on housing prices comply with active data protection. The aim of data protection for the statistics on housing prices is that the sales price or rent of an individual dwelling or financial statement data of an individual housing company cannot be deduced from the figures published by Statistics Finland. Individual data suppliers cannot be identified from the published data. 

In the statistics on housing prices, each class contains several observations. If there are too few observations in a particular category, the data are suppressed. If necessary, protection is performed by means of subsidiary protection or a less detailed classification if the category has repeatedly observations that are suppressed.