Rent vs. mortgage in Czechia: monthly costs compared in 2026

A monthly mortgage payment in Prague can be 26,000 crowns higher than the rent for a comparable flat. A comparison of costs in six Czech cities showed that in Brno, Olomouc and Ostrava, too, buying a home with a loan does not work out cheaper than renting.

Just a few years ago the answer seemed simple: if you could afford a mortgage, you bought a flat, since the payment was often lower than the rent, and with that money you were gradually paying off your own home. Today flat prices and interest rates are high, and the difference is measured not in thousands but in tens of thousands of crowns. “The model where a mortgage paid off the flat I rented out is gone for good,” says mortgage expert Libor Ostatek of Golem Finance and Broker Trust.

Six flats, six cities

For the podcast “Ve vatě”, journalists compared six model 2+kk flats in new-builds or in good condition: in central Prague, on its outskirts, in Brno, Olomouc, Ostrava and Ústí nad Labem. The mortgage was calculated at a rate of 5.5% over 30 years with 80% of the price financed; the buyer covers the remaining 20% from their own funds. Utilities and service charges were not included.

In all six cases, renting turned out cheaper than the mortgage payment. The gap is biggest in central Prague: a 45 sq m 2+kk flat on Žitná street costs about 12 million crowns, the mortgage payment would be roughly 54,000, and rent about 28,000. The difference is around 26,000 crowns a month, or more than 300,000 a year.

Moving to the outskirts of the capital barely changes the picture: a 51 sq m flat in Modřany costs about 8.8 million crowns, the mortgage would be around 39,000 and rent 23,000, a difference of about 16,000. In Brno, in the wider city centre, the payment would be about 39,000 and rent about 23,000. In Ostrava the comparison used a 53 sq m flat for 5.6 million crowns, and in Ústí nad Labem a 63 sq m flat for 4.4 million, but even there, by the authors’ calculations, the mortgage did not beat renting.

That does not mean buying makes no sense: the owner gradually repays the principal and owns a property whose value may rise over time. Everything depends on the flat’s future price, which is determined by location, job opportunities and housing demand. Ostatek warns against assuming that property will keep getting more expensive everywhere. “If I bet on the wrong card and buy a flat for four million in the north, it may look great, but the value may fall in the long run,” he says. His example of unhealthy growth is the Ústí region: second-hand flats that the expert bought three years ago for under two million now cost twice as much.

In his view, price growth is slowing. Flat prices rose 15% last year and will rise about 10% this year, and next year, Ostatek thinks, growth could come down to around 5%.

Young people need not rush into a mortgage

The difference matters especially for young people without large savings. For borrowers under 36, banks approve loans of up to 90% of the price, but that does not make buying affordable. In a model calculation (5.9% rate, 30 years, 10% deposit), the payment for a 12-million-crown flat in central Prague would be about 63,500 crowns a month, on the Prague outskirts 46,000, in Brno about the same, in Olomouc 38,000, in Ostrava 30,000 and in Ústí nad Labem 23,000. On top of that you need your own money: 10% of the price of a Prague flat is 1.2 million crowns, and in Brno the sum approaches a million.

That is why the expert advises young people not to buy a home at any price and to consider renting, especially if they live as a couple or with friends: they can save from thousands to tens of thousands of crowns a month and put it towards a future home or invest it.

Rates could rise

You should not rely on today’s rate alone: over the past five years mortgage rates have risen by four percentage points. In Ostatek’s view, the probability of a rise from 5.5% to 6% is “70–80 percent”. Fixation periods are now usually shorter: three years at most. The authors also ran two further scenarios: rents rise 5% a year, while the rate either climbs to 6% or falls to 5%. For a Prague flat, the gap between rent and mortgage shifts by about five thousand crowns a month, or 60,000 a year.

Another benchmark from the expert: no more than 40% of net income should go on housing, ideally around 35%. That applies to renting too, and utilities and services must be factored in. The burden on owners is higher: according to Ostatek, buying a flat in Prague takes about 7.5–8 years of average income, and according to Golem Finance data, around 63% of net income goes on the mortgage payment.

Around Prague guide on the topic: Ипотека в Чехии для иностранца: кому дадут и сколько нужно своих

Around Prague, based on reporting by seznamzpravy.cz