A realistic starting price from day one is the most effective way to avoid price reductions when you sell your home.
A price reduction is the difference between the first asking price and the final sale price. Finans Danmark’s Boligmarkedsstatistik (housing market statistics) measures it using three price points: the asking price, the price when the home is taken off the market and the sale price. In the 2nd quarter of 2025, the average reduction was 5,5 % for houses and 3,5 % for flats. That corresponds to about 147.000 kr. for a 140 m² house and about 110.000 kr. for an 80 m² owner-occupied flat.
The starting price is by far the most important factor in how large a reduction you end up with. A home with the right starting price typically sells quickly with a minimal reduction, and in popular markets it can even go above the asking price. An overpriced home, on the other hand, often stays on the market for months and ends up with a significant reduction that exceeds the amount you would have accepted from the start.
How the price and the starting price of your home are calculated
The price reduction is calculated like this:
(asking price − sale price) ÷ asking price × 100
The formula counts both the price adjustments you make while the home is on the market and the negotiated reduction that comes with the sale itself. The whole amount from the first asking price to the final sale price is included in the calculation. That is why the pricing of your home and the starting price you choose are closely linked.
Arbejdernes Landsbank’s analysis of Finans Danmark’s data shows that the negotiated reduction is slightly larger than the part that comes from price cuts while the home is on the market. Most of the loss typically arises at the negotiating table, not in the advertised price adjustments along the way. The starting price you set becomes a signal that the buyer takes with them all the way to the negotiation.
Historically, the reduction has become smaller. For houses, it fell from about 10 % in the 4th quarter of 2022 to 6,4 % in the 4th quarter of 2024 and on to 5,5 % in the 4th quarter of 2025. For flats, 3,5 % is the lowest level in four years. In May 2023, the average asking price for houses was 20.025 kr. per m², against a sale price of 16.462 kr. per m². That is a difference of 22 %, more than twice as high as the year before, when the difference was 8 %. A gap that large between asking and sale prices shows what happens when the starting price does not match what buyers are actually willing to pay.
Why the reduction grows with time on the market
If you have set the price too high, the reduction grows with the time on the market. For overpriced homes that stay on the market for a long time, the price reduction can in practice reach 15 – 25 %, and there is no fixed upper limit.
Boligvurderinger.dk has calculated the typical reductions seen on the market, broken down by how long the home has been for sale:
| Time on the market | Typical price reduction |
|---|---|
| 0 – 30 days | 0 – 2 % |
| 30 – 90 days | 2 – 4 % |
| 90 – 180 days | 4 – 6 % |
| 180 – 365 days | 6 – 10 % |
| over a year | 10 – 20 % |
The pattern repeats itself at the top end of the market. In an analysis of 1.811 luxury detached houses sold for at least 8 million kr., the average discount was 2,2 % in the first 30 days, while the median discount rose to around 7,4 % after 121 – 240 days and to around 10,6 % for homes on the market for up to a year.
Bo Lynge from Liebe describes what happens to the way buyers see the home over time: “The market remembers. When a home has been for sale for four months or more, interested buyers start asking questions … risks being seen as a property with an invisible problem, even if the only real challenge is the starting price.”
The right starting price saves you both time on the market and percentage points. Once the buyer has had time to wonder why your home is still on the market, you end up giving more away in the negotiation.
Big differences between city and country, and by type of home
How big a price reduction you risk depends on where in the country your home is. The estimated reductions for houses in 2025 break down as follows:
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About 2 % in central Copenhagen
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3 – 4 % in large cities
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5 – 7 % in suburbs and surrounding areas
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7 – 12 % in outlying municipalities
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Overpriced homes can hit 15 – 25 %+
That range reflects market conditions. In a market with bidding wars and high demand there is very little to give away, while an overpriced home in a thinner market can quickly lose twice as much or more.
In Copenhagen the average price reduction for owner-occupied flats was 1.196 kr. per m² in July 2026, a full 61 % higher than the year before. For an 80 m² flat, that comes to about 95.680 kr. In Aarhus the reduction was −19 kr. per m² in July 2026, which means that on average the selling price was above the asking price.
The market backdrop in the 1st quarter of 2026 shows a price per square metre for houses of 18.626 kr., a rise of 6,8 % in a year and the highest level ever. An average house of 155 m² therefore costs 2,89 million kr. Prices have been pushed up. That does not make the starting price irrelevant, though. The closer you get to what buyers will actually pay in your particular area, the smaller the chance that the difference ends up as a price reduction on your sale.
Home valuation and the estate agent’s local market insight
A home valuation is about more than the figure itself. It looks at the home’s possibilities, at what it can realistically sell for, and at the potential in it that you may not have spotted yourself. A local valuation specialist typically meets you at your home and goes through it on site, and you book an appointment online before the visit.
Many local estate agents offer a free, no-obligation valuation, and it does not commit you to using that particular agent for the sale itself. You get an informed estimate of where your home stands without having tied yourself to anything.
An estate agent’s local knowledge makes a real difference when the starting price is set. Local agents and specialists across the country carry out valuations and viewings. Their knowledge of your particular market is crucial to getting the starting price right. They know what buyers in your area have actually paid, and how homes like yours are moving in the market right now.
The asking price is the seller’s preferred starting point, not necessarily the sale price. A realistic valuation stops you from setting the price so high that the home is seen as expensive and scares buyers away before they have even seen it.
Get a free home valuation from your local Brikk agent
At Brikk, a local valuation specialist comes to your home and assesses its possibilities, selling price and potential. It costs nothing, and you are under no obligation to use Brikk for the sale itself.
Should you later decide to sell with a Brikk agent, there are two fixed packages to choose from:
| ‘You run the viewings’ | ‘Your local Brikk agent runs the viewings’ | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | 22.500 kr. | 34.500 kr. (the most popular) |
| Who handles viewings | You do the viewings yourself | Your local Brikk agent runs the viewings |
| Included in both | Photographer, floor plan, advertising on Boligsiden and Boliga, and a dedicated agent from valuation to handover of the keys | Photographer, floor plan, advertising on Boligsiden and Boliga, and a dedicated agent from valuation to handover of the keys |
The only difference between the two packages is who takes care of the viewings. Everything else is included in both.
Brikk has local agents and specialists all over the country. Knowing your particular area is what makes the valuation useful when it comes to getting the starting price right. Among other things, Brikk can point to more than 6 billion kr. sold for clients and a Trustpilot score of 4,6 out of 5 based on 900+ reviews.
Book a free, no-obligation valuation online with Brikk and get an informed estimate of what your home is really worth before the first advert is written.
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