Increasing Cross-Border Ownership of Real Estate: Evidence from Norway


Authors: Annette Alstadsæter, and Andreas Økland

This paper is the first to estimate the full extent of foreign-owned commercial and residential real estate in a country, including both direct and indirect ownership. We utilise unique Norwegian administrative data with reliable market value estimates and country-level ownership information. Overall, 2 percent of Norwegian real estate assets were foreign-owned in 2017, while this share amounts to 10 percent for assets owned by Norwegian corporations. Foreign ownership has increased over the last decade, and ownership from tax havens even more rapidly. Ownership from neighbouring countries and Luxembourg is especially large.