Focus report Aarhus - Colliers Denmark 2024

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COLLIERS FOCUS REPORT AARHUS 2024

INTRO

Continued progress in Jutland’s growth centre

Aarhus is Denmark’s second-largest city and is centrally located in Jutland. Within just an hour’s drive, you will find Aalborg to the north, Herning to the west and the Triangle Region to the south. Counting 367,000 inhabitants, the city is characterised by having the highest percentage of students in the population nationwide, around 25%. Aarhus is lo cated in the heart of the Central Denmark Region with more than 1.4 million inhabitants.

Over the past decade, Aarhus has seen strong popula tion growth of 13% compared to around 6% nationwide. One of the reasons for this impressive growth is a signifi cant increase in the number of 20-29 year-olds, which has risen 24% in the same period, bringing the population to 93,800. The city’s high proportion of young people may largely be explained by the city’s wide range of educa tion programmes, with Aarhus University being just one of the popular educational institutions in the city.

In summer 2023, the university reported an impressive increase in the number of applicants, with more appli cants having Aarhus University as their first priority in their choice of education programme. In addition, the young part of the labour force, i.e. the 30-39 year-olds, has also grown. This population group has grown 20% in the same period and now totals 51,000 inhabitants. By 2033, the number of people living in Aarhus will have continued to increase, reflected in a projected population growth of 8% compared to 3% nationwide. Future popu lation growth is expected to be largely driven by families with children, as the number of 0-9 year-olds is expected to increase by 21%, while the number of 30-39-year-olds is expected to increase by 18%. However, as in the rest of Denmark, the oldest popula tion groups are expected to continue to experience high percentage growth. Demographic changes will therefore play an extremely important role in the future housing needs of Aarhus residents if the population forecasts are correct. It is not a given that 30-39 year-olds will choose to remain in the City of Aarhus, despite an attractive job offering, as the housing supply and prices here and in neighbouring municipalities have a significant impact on the municipality’s ability to retain this age group. Put another way, there are several factors that can affect the future demographics of the municipality, and these can change from year to year.