Botswana’s residential property market lost momentum in 2025, with falling prices highlighting a growing divide between resilient demand for affordable housing and weaker appetite for higher-end homes.
Data cited in the Bank of Botswana’s April 2026 Monetary Policy Report shows the average price of residential properties sold fell 9.9 percent quarter-on-quarter to P888,055 in the third quarter of 2025, driven by declines in Greater Gaborone, Francistown and Selebi-Phikwe.
The figures suggest the housing market has entered another cooling cycle after a fragile post-pandemic recovery.
Botswana’s residential market weakened sharply in 2020 as economic disruption dented buyer confidence, with average prices falling from P802,379 in the first quarter to P720,000 by the fourth quarter. Conditions improved in 2021 and strengthened further in 2023, when prices recorded moderate gains, particularly in Gaborone.
That recovery, however, appears to have lost momentum.
Average residential sale prices slipped to P907,622 in the first quarter of 2025 before declining further later in the year.
The slowdown is not uniform across the market.
Affordable housing continues to show resilience, with steady demand for homes priced between P400,000 and P1 million, as well as rental units below P5,000 per month, according to property analysts Riberry Botswana.
By contrast, supply in the medium- and upper-end residential market increased, putting downward pressure on prices as buyers turned cautious.
The property slowdown mirrors broader economic weakness.
Botswana’s sluggish economy, pressure on household incomes and tighter financing conditions are weighing on demand. The Bank of Botswana says appetite for residential property loans has weakened because of affordability concerns, higher borrowing costs and the discontinuation of GEMVAS.