Housing affordability impacts family planning and independence in Czechia and Slovakia

Research conducted by STEM/MARK for Salutem Group reveals that housing unaffordability is significantly impacting demographic trends and living arrangements in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

In the Czech Republic, approximately 43 percent of people aged 25 to 45 stated that housing played a decisive or partial role in their decision regarding when or if to have children. Among childless couples, this figure rises to nearly three out of five. Additionally, 82 percent of respondents rate housing affordability as poor.

In Slovakia, housing shortages have led to much later independence for young adults. While the average age for leaving the parental home in the Czech Republic is 25.8, it is 30.9 in Slovakia. Currently, 57 percent of Slovaks aged 25–34 live with their parents, compared to 22 percent of Czechs in the same age group. This trend is driven by a market where 93–94 percent of the population owns their home, leaving very few affordable rental alternatives. Eurofound data from 2024 indicated that almost no urban rental listings in Slovakia were affordable for a young person earning an average wage.