Salzburg's municipalities: Lowest debt in all of Austria!

Salzburg's municipalities: Lowest debt in all of Austria!

At a time when many Austrian communities are struggling with debt, Salzburg stands out with a remarkably low per capita debt of just 862 euros per resident. According to Salzburg24, the Salzburg municipalities can look back on an overall positive financial situation, while the mountain of debt in Austria is hovering at a rapidly increasing level of over 23 billion euros.

If we take a closer look at the situation, it becomes clear that only 53 of over 2,000 municipalities in Austria are completely debt-free. These include St. Johann and Bischofshofen in Salzburg, which are considered prime examples of sound financial policy. Compared to other federal states, however, the situation looks less rosy: In Vorarlberg, the per capita debt amounts to 2,913 euros, followed by Styria with 2,718 euros and Lower Austria with 2,182 euros.

The highest debts in Vienna and Vorarlberg

The situation is particularly striking in Vienna, where the per capita debt of 5,278 euros is not directly comparable because the capital is both a federal state and a municipality. What is astonishing is that almost half of the total municipal debt, namely 10.2 billion euros, is owed to Vienna. In addition, the municipality of Warth in Vorarlberg, with a debt of a whopping 43,957 euros per resident, shows that things are financially difficult even in the less glamorous corners of Austria.

• Kaisers in Tirol: 27.242 Euro
• Lech: 27.052 Euro (einzige Gemeinde mit über 1.000 Einwohnern unter den zehn am höchsten verschuldeten Gemeinden)

This high level of debt could be due to many different factors, including economic conditions, community size and financial transfers to the states. The financial demands of the federal states in conjunction with higher infrastructure costs are putting many municipalities under pressure and thus contributing to their debt.

A review of the financial situation

Overall, Austrian municipalities struggled with an annual deficit of over two billion euros in 2023 and 2024, which corresponds to around 0.5 percent of gross domestic product. This contradicts the Stability Pact, which stipulates a maximum deficit of 0.1 percent of GDP and compliance with which has appeared increasingly questionable in recent years. The debt in the municipalities was able to be reduced somewhat in 2024, but it still remained above the desired target value, as Die Presse points out.

The graphic from 2023 illustrates the widely varying numbers and the difficulties that arise from the complexity of finances, especially in relation to Vienna, where numerous tasks have to be fulfilled both locally and nationally.

The coming years will show how the municipalities' financial situation will develop and whether Salzburg's healthy example can also be adopted by other municipalities. Compliance with legal requirements and conscious use of financial resources would be the key to success.