Denmark, Finland and Sweden are among the EU countries with the smallest budget deficits and this has been reflected in their property markets, which all rose in value last year, according to Colliers International.

The company report: ‘The deficit number for Denmark in 2010 was -2.7% and for Finland -2.5% while Sweden was in balance (no deficit). To compare, the EU average was -6.4%. Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden have, of course, been widely affected by the economic downturn, but the economies are fundamentally quite healthy with a sound financial situation.

‘In 2009 all four countries experienced negative growth, most significantly in Finland. In 2010 the growth had returned to a positive level although for Norway it was only 0.4%. Finland and Sweden have both experienced a significant turn-around from 2009 to 2010.’

Torben Nielsen, sales director for the Nordics at Colliers International, added: “The number of property transactions went down in all markets during the crisis but now the number of transactions is increasing again, but still the markets are influenced by funding difficulties. The stressed bank sector implies that it is very difficult to obtain funding for property investments, unless the properties have very low risks.

“The bank sector in Norway is less affected than in the other countries, even though the LTV available is less than it used to be in 2005–2008.”