“We are currently dealing with a rather strange situation on the real estate market” – we read in the report. In September, among the 17 cities surveyed, the average price increased in 11 and decreased in six. “In reality, the number of buyers is limited. Those who currently buy on the secondary market can often negotiate a discount of even more than 10 percent from the offer price. In turn, developers prices they do not reduce, but willingly add storage rooms or garage spaces 'for free' – add the authors of the study by Expandera and Rentier.io.
Housing prices are rising in most cities. Experts showed the latest data
“Another good news for people planning to purchase real estate with a loan is that obtaining a mortgage loan is becoming more and more convenient and faster. This is not only due to the fact that there are fewer people willing to take out a loan, so the queues of applications are smaller,” experts point out. They explain that banks are increasingly streamlining the processes of granting this type of loans, and in the coming years there may probably be a revolution in this area.
The report shows that in most of the analyzed cities in Poland, the asking prices of apartments were increasing. “Let's start with data for the entire third quarter, where we have information on price behavior in individual segments – for small apartments (up to 35 square meters), medium-sized apartments (35-60 square meters) and large apartments (over 60 square meters). Decreases for small apartments and large apartments, we recorded only in six cities, and for medium-sized apartments only in five. In total, declines occurred in 17 markets, and increases in as many as 33 out of 51 surveyed markets (for small apartments in Radom, the number of advertisements did not exceed 100, so no data were available). we publish)” – they emphasize.
Average quarterly changes are relatively small. According to experts, it was an increase of 1.55% for large apartments, 2.42% for medium-sized apartments, and 2.24% for small apartments. Some cities have seen significant changes. The prices of medium-sized premises increased the most in… Katowice (+19%) and all types of apartments in Sosnowiec (small 14%, large 11%, medium 8%). In turn, the largest declines were recorded in the case of large premises in Radom and Gdańsk (-5% each) and medium-sized premises in Białystok (-3%).
Experts add that changes over the course of a year make a big impression. “Small and medium-sized apartments are on average 15 percent more expensive than a year ago, and large ones by 13 percent. The record holder is small apartments in Katowice, which have gone up in price by as much as 34 percent. On the other hand, we have large apartments in Radom, which are only 4.9% more expensive than last year,” we read.
However, in September there was a predominance of growth. Housing prices rose in 11 of the 17 cities analyzed. The sharpest decline occurred in Gdynia (-6.2% month-on-month). Experts explain that expensive premium investment offers went on sale there in August. However, in September the average price dropped significantly because there were no longer so many expensive offers in newly added ads.
Is the real estate market in great shape? “It's just an illusion”
“Based on the above information, one may get the impression that the real estate market is in excellent condition. However, this is only an illusion. It must be remembered that only sellers have an influence on the price level in advertisements. In reality, demand is limited, which is why prices have stagnated. and in some locations they started to decline,” emphasize the experts from Expander and Rentier.io.
They indicate that both investment demand and demand from people buying apartments for themselves are limited. In turn, investors “have lost hope for further strong increases in housing prices in the near future.” The report states that rental yields for newly purchased apartments are usually similar or even lower than those on bank deposits or treasury bonds.
“In turn, the demand for apartments purchased for themselves is limited by high apartment prices and still high interest rates. The latter means that loan installments are high and the available loan amount is quite low compared to apartment prices. The situation is somewhat saved by the fact that they increase significantly remuneration. However, not everyone could count on a large raise. Therefore, many people are afraid of high installments and are waiting for the moment when interest rates will fall and loans will become cheaper and more easily available,” experts write.
They note that limited demand means that although offer prices are high and seem to continue to grow, significant price negotiations are increasingly taking place in actual transactions. “On the secondary market, the price can sometimes be reduced by more than 10 percent. It is especially worth looking for apartments that have been waiting for a buyer for a long time,” we read. However, developers are still reluctant to change price lists, but they lower prices in a way that does not affect the statistics. “As part of promotions, they increasingly often add a free storage room or garage space. There are also 30/70 and 20/80 payment schedules that are favorable for buyers,” experts note.