Home / Magazine / Booster 2026

Booster 2026: what the new housing measures change for property value

On 16 July 2026, Housing Minister Claude Meisch and Finance Minister Gilles Roth presented the “Booster fir de Wunnengsbau”, a package of seven measures to revive construction, support home ownership and expand the supply of affordable housing. The headline figure is the Bëllegen Akt. For anyone valuing property, though, the most interesting point lies elsewhere: two of the measures rely on separating land value from building value.

1. The Bëllegen Akt rises to €45,000 per person

The tax credit offset against registration and transcription duties rises from €40,000 to €45,000 per individual for a home used as a personal residence. With duties of 7% (6% registration and 1% transcription), a single buyer covers the duties up to a price of about €640,000; a couple who each still have their full credit (€90,000 in total) up to almost €1.3 million. The measure applies to deeds signed from 16 July 2026, with no announced time limit.

• Example: a single buyer purchases an existing flat for €640,000 → €44,800 in duties, fully covered by the €45,000 credit.
• Example: a single buyer purchases for €900,000 → €63,000 in duties, of which €18,000 remain payable.

Excluding any municipal surcharge (City of Luxembourg). Keep in mind: the Bëllegen Akt lowers purchase costs, not the risk of overpaying. On a €900,000 purchase, a 5% overprice equals €45,000 — the entire credit.

2. Off-plan (VEFA): duties on the land value only

When an individual buys their main residence off-plan (VEFA) and construction is no more than 80% complete at signing, registration and transcription duties are due on the land value only. The exemption is temporary: it covers deeds signed during the three years from 16 July 2026.

• Example: new flat for €900,000, land share of €250,000 → €17,500 in duties, covered by the Bëllegen Akt. For a completed home at the same price, duties would be €63,000.

The land value thus becomes the basis of the calculation. In practice it comes from the deed and the developer's figures; an independent valuation checks that this share is consistent with the municipality's land market — and makes it easier to compare several new-build projects.

3. Accelerated “3 × 6” depreciation for rental investment

The new regime provides for depreciation of 6% a year for 6 years where the depreciable base does not exceed €600,000 per building. Above that threshold, a 2% rate applies to the whole base with no time limit. For 2026 acquisitions, taxpayers can choose between the old and the new regime; from 1 January 2027 only the new one applies to new acquisitions, while earlier regimes run to their end.

Since land cannot be depreciated, everything depends on how the price is split:

• Rental house bought for €850,000, land valued at €300,000 → depreciable base of €550,000, below the threshold: €33,000 of depreciation a year for 6 years.
• Same property, land valued at €200,000 → base of €650,000, above the threshold: €13,000 a year.

Two splits, two regimes. An arbitrary split is weak in front of the tax authorities; a reasoned split based on the local land market and construction costs can be defended. That is exactly what a valuation using the replacement cost method provides.

4. 8% VAT for social rental housing

A reduced 8% VAT rate is planned for the creation of rental housing with a social purpose, under strict conditions: 120 m² maximum, a sale price per m² no higher than the median published by the Observatoire de l'habitat for the region and size of the home, a rental yield capped at 4% of net capital invested, and letting for at least ten years to a tenant certified as eligible by the ministry. The measure will apply from the law's entry into force, without retroactive effect. Positioning a price per m² against these medians is therefore part of any yield analysis.

5. The other measures in the package

• Interest subsidy: the loan amount taken into account rises from €200,000 to €250,000, the per-child increase from €20,000 to €30,000 (maximum ceiling €370,000); it rises to €300,000 where at least one borrower is 35 or younger. Files already being paid out also benefit.
• Home-ownership and savings bonuses: now also available to buyers of affordable or moderate-cost housing where at least one of them is 35 or younger.
• Housing Bond: a €250 million citizens' bond planned for early 2027, with interest exempt from the 20% final withholding tax.
• State VEFA programme: an additional €300 million, the option to buy only part of a project as soon as sales open, and new regional ceilings grouping municipalities into six categories.

What this means for value

After the 2023–2024 correction, the market has stabilised. Measures that support demand — particularly from young households and off-plan buyers — do not change a property's value overnight, but they shift the trade-offs: new build versus existing, buying alone versus as a couple, investing below or above the €600,000 threshold. In each case, a demonstrated value and a documented land/building split keep decisions from resting on assumptions.