Price per area is the fastest normalization in real estate: divide price by size and suddenly a 90 m² flat and a 1,400 sq ft house can be discussed in the same breath. The math is trivial; the traps are in what the number hides.
The conversion, done exactly
One foot is exactly 0.3048 meters, so one square meter is exactly 10.7639104… square feet. A $450,000 home with 2,000 sq ft (185.81 m²) is $225.00/sq ft or $2,421.88/m²: the same fact in two unit systems. Acres (43,560 sq ft) and hectares (10,000 m²) follow the same exact-factor logic.
What the number includes, and what it doesn't
- Measurement conventions differ. Some markets quote gross floor area including balconies and common proportions; others quote net usable area. A 10–20% definitional gap can masquerade as a bargain.
- Land share matters. A house price includes its plot; an apartment includes a sliver of the building. Comparing them per-area mixes apples and land.
- Quality isn't normalized. Condition, layout efficiency and specification explain wide spreads between similar-looking numbers.