Norwegian homeowners housing costs and maintenance deferral, Digi Mart USA News: One in five Norwegian homeowners says it is very or fairly challenging to make ends meet, according to a survey conducted by Opinion for the Homeowners Association (Huseierne). Three in ten have postponed planned maintenance due to tight finances.
Norwegians spend on average nearly one-third of their after-tax income on housing. For single-person households, housing costs exceed half of their salary, figures from the Homeowners Association show.
The figures come from the Housing Cost Index (Bokostnadsindeksen), which Samfunnsøkonomisk Analyse prepares annually for the Homeowners Association. For a typical 120-square-meter detached house, average housing costs were 225,245 Norwegian kroner in 2026, down from 228,938 kroner in 2025.
The Homeowners Association attributes the decline to Norgespris.
Even so, roughly one-third of after-tax income still goes to housing, about the same as last year and compared with one-fifth in 2020.
For young people who want to strengthen their finances over time, Lene Drange highlights housing savings accounts (BSU) and funds as the most important priorities. The source article includes her advice on saving, investing and tax-free allowances (frikort).
