The Swedish housing market is bucking the usual summer lull with a record-breaking number of apartments snapped up by buyers, fresh figures show.

The summer is usually a slow period for the Swedish property market, but not this year. New monthly figures from Svensk Mäklarstatistik, which keeps statistics on property sales, showed that June was a record-breaking month.

The number of detached homes that changed owners increased year-on-year by 3% last month, while apartments increased by 14% in June compared to last year.

“This suggests that the worries that were there in May have transformed into optimism. More than 10,000 (apartment units) sold is a figure we haven't been close to in previous years in June, so it is somewhat of a milestone,” Svensk Mäklarstatistik's business development head Hans Flink told local press.

Looking at the first six months of the year, the number of apartments sold in Sweden increased by 3%, and detached homes by 2% – contrary to fears sparked by the coronavirus pandemic.

Johan Engström, CEO at estate agents Fastighetsbyrån, reportedly added: “After four months with corona we note that the property market has not been as dramatically affected as many feared.”