If you want to buy a resale one-bedroom flat in Ljubljana in 2026, you need around €66,000 in own funds. For a studio, about €40,000 is enough, while a two-bedroom flat or a new build takes €85,000 or more.
These figures don’t come from listings. We calculated them from actual sale prices collected by the Surveying and Mapping Authority of Slovenia (GURS) and from the interest rates we track at Slovenian banks every day. Below you will find the full calculation, the salary you need and how long it takes to save.
For the general down payment rules across Slovenia, read how much down payment you need to buy a flat. This article is only about Ljubljana, where prices are almost 60% above the Slovenian average.
How much does a flat in Ljubljana cost?
Every year GURS publishes a report on the property market. It is based on prices from signed contracts, not asking prices. The latest report came out in April 2026 and covers sales in 2025.
| Resale flats in Ljubljana, 2025 | Value |
|---|---|
| Median price | €5,050/m² |
| Cheaper quarter of sales | below €4,430/m² |
| More expensive quarter of sales | above €5,800/m² |
| Median size of flats sold | 53 m² |
| Median year built | 1973 |
| Price growth in one year | 10% |
| Price growth since 2020 | 69% |
New builds cost a lot more. Most new flats ready to move into in 2025 sold for €7,000/m² or more, including VAT and excluding parking. The most expensive ones topped €10,000/m².
Differences between parts of the city are smaller than you might think:
- most expensive: Viško polje, Brdo, Vrhovci (€5,320/m²), Črnuče, Nadgorica (€5,230/m²) and Koseze, Šiška (€5,210/m²),
- middle: the Centre, Bežigrad, Moste, Fužine, Šentvid and most other areas (€4,780 to €5,110/m²),
- cheapest: Tomačevo, Šmartno, Sneberje, Zalog (€4,430/m²).
Keep in mind this is 2025 data. Ljubljana prices have risen by 2% to 17% a year recently, so add a few percent of buffer for 2026.
How much money do you need for each flat?
For your own home, a bank will usually lend you at most 80% of the value. That is the Bank of Slovenia’s recommendation. The other 20% is your down payment. On top of that come the purchase costs.
Our calculation assumes:
- a 2% agency commission plus VAT on a resale flat (for new builds it is usually included in the price),
- €1,300 for valuation, notary, land registry and bank fees,
- €5,000 for moving and basic furnishing,
- the 2% real estate transfer tax is paid by the seller, as the law provides.
We explain all purchase costs in detail in costs of buying a property, and bank loan fees in hidden loan costs.
| Flat | Price | 20% down payment | Down payment and costs | With €10,000 reserve |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio, 30 m², resale | €151,500 | €30,300 | €40,300 | €50,300 |
| One-bedroom, 53 m², resale | €267,650 | €53,530 | €66,360 | €76,360 |
| Two-bedroom, 75 m², resale | €378,750 | €75,750 | €91,290 | €101,290 |
| One-bedroom, 55 m², new build | €385,000 | €77,000 | €83,300 | €93,300 |
Two things are missing from the table. For a new build, the parking space, which in Ljubljana you usually buy separately and which carries 22% VAT. For a resale flat, renovation. Half the flats sold were built in 1973 or earlier, so you will often need at least a new bathroom, wiring or windows.
Location matters less than you might expect. The same 53 m² flat costs around €235,000 in the cheaper part of the market and needs about €59,000 in savings. In the more expensive part it costs around €307,000 and needs about €75,000.
Work out your own case with the real price, down payment and costs in the real estate financing calculator.
What salary do you need for the loan?
A large down payment won’t help without enough income. The bank checks two Bank of Slovenia limits:
- All loan repayments together may not exceed 50% of your net income.
- After repayments you must have at least €745 a month left, plus more for each dependant (current amounts).
We explain how banks calculate this in how banks calculate creditworthiness.
In September 2026, fixed rates for 25 to 30-year housing loans are around 4% if you meet the bank’s conditions. Usually that means having your salary paid into an account at that bank. Without it, rates are between 4.5% and 5%. Read why in what “existing customer” means for your loan. You can find current offers from all banks in the mortgage comparison.
At a 4% rate:
| Flat | Loan (80%) | Payment, 30 yrs | Payment, 25 yrs | Net salary needed (30 yrs) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio, 30 m² | €121,200 | €579 | €640 | about €1,330 |
| One-bedroom, 53 m² | €214,120 | €1,022 | €1,130 | about €2,050 |
| Two-bedroom, 75 m² | €303,000 | €1,447 | €1,599 | about €2,900 |
| New build, 55 m² | €308,000 | €1,470 | €1,626 | about €2,950 |
The average net salary in Slovenia was €1,723 in June 2026, according to the Statistical Office (SURS). On that salary alone you can borrow up to around €180,000. That buys a flat of up to about €225,000, or roughly 45 m² in Ljubljana. A couple on two average salaries can borrow up to around €360,000, but the payment would then take half their combined income.
Check how much your salary allows in the credit capacity calculator. For more examples by salary, see how much can I borrow based on my salary.
One more thing: a longer term lowers the payment, but you pay much more overall. On a €214,120 loan over 30 years, the interest alone comes to around €154,000. Compare terms in the loan calculator, and see all loan costs as one percentage in the APR calculator.
Example: Maja and Žan buy a one-bedroom flat
Maja and Žan each earn the average salary, €3,446 net together. They have saved €20,000 and can put aside €800 a month. They want a 53 m² resale flat.
- They need around €66,400 for the down payment and costs. They are €46,400 short.
- At €800 a month, they will save that in about 58 months, just under five years.
- The payment on a €214,000 loan over 30 years will be around €1,020. That is under a third of their income, so the bank would likely approve it.
So the obstacle isn’t their salary, it’s their savings. If prices rose 5% a year over those five years, they would need around €15,000 more. That is why it makes sense to check the target every year.
How many years do you need to save?
The table shows how long it takes to save the down payment and costs from zero. The reserve and interest on savings are not included.
| Monthly savings | Studio (€40,300) | One-bedroom (€66,360) | Two-bedroom (€91,290) |
|---|---|---|---|
| €500 | 6.7 years | 11.1 years | 15.2 years |
| €800 | 4.2 years | 6.9 years | 9.5 years |
| €1,000 | 3.4 years | 5.5 years | 7.6 years |
| €1,500 | 2.2 years | 3.7 years | 5.1 years |
Money for a flat you will buy in a few years should be safe and easy to reach. A fixed-term deposit with a term that ends before your purchase is a good choice. See what it earns in the deposit calculator. Shares and funds can lose value right before you need the money, so they are not a good fit here. More on this choice in saving or investing.
How to buy with less savings
Choose a smaller flat or a cheaper part of town. For a one-bedroom flat, the gap between the cheaper and pricier parts of the market is around €70,000 in price and €16,000 in savings.
Look around Ljubljana. In Domžale, Kamnik and Medvode the median price was €4,060/m², and in Grosuplje, Vrhnika and Logatec €4,000/m². That is about a fifth less than in Ljubljana. Add commuting costs, though.
Buy without an agency. On a €268,000 flat you save up to around €6,500. Still have a lawyer check the contract and land register.
Offer extra collateral. If you pledge another property, for example your parents’, the bank may lend more than 80%. The down payment shrinks, but the risk grows for everyone.
Consider renting. If buying is still years away, check whether renting in the meantime makes more sense. We compared both in renting vs buying a flat.
Where to start
- Check how much your income lets you borrow in the credit capacity calculator.
- Build a full budget with price, down payment and costs in the real estate financing calculator.
- Find the best bank in the mortgage comparison.
- Once you have a specific flat in mind, read our guide to buying property and everything about housing loans.
The calculations in this article are for information only. Actual terms, costs and the approved amount depend on the bank, the valuation, the contract and your financial situation.
Sources
Flat prices come from the 2025 Slovenian Real Estate Market Report by the Surveying and Mapping Authority of Slovenia (tables 9 and 14 and the Ljubljana chapter, in Slovene). The average salary is Statistical Office of Slovenia data for June 2026. Interest rates come from bank price lists we collect for the mortgage comparison. See how we collect data on our methodology page.
