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1024 Budapest Hungary

Attorney's phone number Tel.: +36 1 316 9233
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Attorney's office e-mail info@drlittner.hu

Apartment market: price hike stalled?

Napi.hu, 30 April 2019 – Although the annual rate of increase of apartment prices has fallen, there is still a significant hike exceeding 20 per cent in Budapest, according to the latest survey published by the National Bank of Hungary.

In Budapest, the Q4 2018 the annual acceleration rate of prices was slightly slower but still strong at 22.9 per cent. The latest apartment price index shows a slower nominal annual rate of increase of 18.2 per cent for country towns, which exceeds the figure for the previous quarter.

In small settlements, the nominal price hike was 2.3 per cent, 13 percentage points less than the national average, which indicates a further increase of the difference between smaller and larger settlements.

That said, according to the summary report published by the National Bank of Hungary, the nominal price increase was only 0.2 per cent on average in the fourth quarter of 2018, while the annual rate of increase was 15.2 per cent, compared to 16.2 per cent in the previous quarter. The national average of apartment price increase was 11.6 per cent. In Q4 2018 the national average of real price increase was 11.6 per cent.

The most popular apartment types in Hungary

napi.hu, 28. September 2018 – The residential property boom continues in Hungary. In the second half of the year demand was even higher than in the first, especially for apartments with their own boiler heating. On a year-on-year basis, demand for each apartment advertised grew by 12, 15 and 24 per cent in June, July and August, respectively, followed by a whopping 41 per cent increase in September. This spectacular figure can partly be explained by the fact that on account of expected tightening of credit terms on residential properties and of the potential increase of the preferential VAT on apartments after the end of 2019 many buyers are keen to fast-track their purchase.
As far as heating fuels are concerned, natural gas is the most popular. The popularity of apartments with their own boiler heating is above average: 32 per cent of potential buyers prefer this type of heating because it is generally believed to be the most economical. Gas-fuelled wall heaters are also popular because they form the most frequent type of heating in studio apartments. The high proportion of district heating is a direct consequence of the popularity of precast concrete high rise apartment blocks.

Budapest residential property market may slow down

Napi.hu, 30 July 2018 – In the first half of 2018 there were 6517 apartments built in Hungary, 30 per cent more than in the same period of the previous year. The number of residential units under planning was 18,066, 8.9 per cent less than in the first half of 2017. The number of planning approvals issued in Budapest decreased by 27 per cent. 50-50 per cent of residential properties are still built by private persons and companies, respectively.

54 per cent of apartments created in a new building are located in houses, 36 per cent in condominiums and 6.2 per cent in gated residential communities.

The average floor space of apartments is 101 square metres, an increase of 5 square metres from the previous year. The number of apartments planned reduced by 27 and 3.5 per cent in Budapest and in county centres, respectively, and increased (by 17 per cent) in other towns and cities only.

Fun facts on Hungarian residential properties

napi.hu, 06.06.2017 – According to a recent survey almost one third of occupied apartments in Hungary were built from brick and mortar, the percentage of apartments in concrete high-rises is 14 per cent while those built from adobe have a share of 13 per cent. In Budapest every fourth apartment is in a concrete high-rise. On a national level, one third of occupied apartments have three rooms while 31 and 29 per cent have two and four or more rooms, respectively. Average floor space has increased by 6 per cent since 2011 and is currently 84 sq. m. In Budapest the percentage of apartments with 40 or less sq. m. is 15 per cent, three times the national average.

In 2016 there were 2.49 people living each apartment. Occupant density is the lowest in Budapest with 2.15 people per apartment and the highest in small settlements (2.75 people per apartment). Last year more than 12 per cent of the 4.4 million apartments registered were vacant, and the tendency is rising. The number of unoccupied apartments grew as a result of the diminishing population, the aging population of small settlements, migration from villages and also the growing tendency of using apartments in towns as offices.

Experts expect a boom in apartment construction

napi.hu, 03.04.2017 – According to experts the number of apartments constructed this year may rise significantly, but a change in VAT legislation and the lack of skilled workers may have an unwelcome effect on the construction industry. A recent survey showed that the number of condominium apartments completed this year will reach 2010 highs, but even last year’s 10 thousand was a four-year record. Experts base their estimate on the number of planning applications mainly in the periphery of Budapest, in larger Hungarian towns and in the vicinity of Lake Balaton, mainly as a result of the 5 per cent VAT. This VAT rate will probably be in force until 2019 only, so – due to the time requirement of planning permission procedures – developers have only one year left to start new projects.