With the new municipal councils now firmly in place, nearly half of Brussels communes are upping their property taxes for the 2026 financial year, reports DH in a new analysis.
In Brussels, municipalities benefit from two main sources of tax revenue: personal income tax (IPP) and additional property tax (PRI).
The IPP surcharge is an additional percentage on the income tax collected by the Federal Government. The PRI surcharges apply to real estate and are calculated via "additional cents".
For example, 2,940 additional cents means that for every euro paid to the Brussels-Capital Region, an additional tax of €29.40 will be payable to the local authority, according to the Brussels Institute of Statistics and Analysis (IBSA).
For 2026, nearly half of Brussels communes will increase their property tax (PRI) rates: Auderghem, City of Brussels, Etterbeek, Evere, Ganshoren, Koekelberg, Saint-Josse, Uccle and Watermael-Boitsfort.
As for personal income tax (IPP), three entities are increasing it (Evere, Koekelberg and Schaerbeek) and four are lowering it (City of Brussels, Etterbeek, Watermael-Boitsfort and Uccle).
It should be noted that several decisions still need to be officially approved by the municipal councils, for example, in Molenbeek, where the IPP will be voted on in early 2026.
Auderghem remains the municipality with the lowest property tax in the Brussels-Capital Region, despite an increase this year from 1,990 to 2,440. "A first in 17 years", points out Mayor Sophie de Vos (Défi) to DH. Woluwe-Saint-Pierre is in second and maintains its levy at 2,700 after an increase last year.
The municipality with the highest property tax is Schaerbeek, with an additional 4,191 centimes. It is now closely followed by Saint-Josse, which is doubling its rate from 2,980 to 4,090. The other top municipalities include Jette (3,990), Forest (3,990), Evere (3,990), Molenbeek (3,890) and Koekelberg (3,890).
Koekelberg has significantly increased its property tax rate this year, as well as its personal income tax (from 6% to 7%). Mayor Olivia P'tito (PS) refers to the impact of the unemployment reform on the Brussels social welfare centres (CPAS) and the police budget, which she believes the Federal Government is not covering sufficiently.
"It's not a decision we take lightly. But that's how much the federal government is passing on to us. It's either that or closing schools and nurseries, which we don't want to do," she told DH.
In Uccle, for example, the personal income tax is only falling by 0.1%, compared with an increase in the property tax from 2,940 to 3,400 additional centimes.
The situation is similar in Watermael-Boitsfort, with the property tax rising from 3,090 to 3,390, compared with a 0.1% reduction in the income tax. The same is true in Etterbeek, with a 0.2% decrease in personal income tax.
In the City of Brussels, the decrease in income tax is more pronounced from 6% to 4.9%, which is now the lowest rate in the Region.
Only Woluwe-Saint-Lambert is bringing in a very slight property tax reduction for the coming year, without any increase in the income tax in return, falling from 3,190 to 3,175.
"We had planned this gradual reduction," points out Olivier Maingain (Libres) to DH, who refers to "control of personnel expenditure", with around ten contracts not being renewed next year.
DH notes that to ‘compensate’ for increases in property tax, municipalities generally introduce local ‘Be Home’ bonuses, which complement the equivalent regional bonus for owners who actually live in their property. This is to ensure multi-property owners pay the increases.
