The Palm Jumeirah
On the artificial archipelago of The Palm Jumeirah, the first residential facilities have been commissioned – villas on the "branches" of the palm tree. The technology of creating bulk islands was not a novelty, but in Dubai it was used on the largest scale. The Palm Jumeirah is the first artificial archipelago in the UAE and one of the most sensational projects in the history of the global real estate market. Other artificial islands, although filled in, have not yet been built up.
Crash of the year
The US real estate market
The mortgage crisis in the United States dragged down the real estate market and the economy of the country, and then the whole world. The crisis of high-risk mortgages in 2007 was the result of six years of market growth, speculative transactions and subprime housing loans. American real estate is still losing value.
Event of the year
Bulgaria's accession to the EU
Real estate market players have been waiting for Bulgaria to join the European Union for a long time. In the run-up to this event, there was a significant increase in real estate prices. The maximum rise was recorded in 2003, when housing prices almost doubled. After that, the market calmed down somewhat, but in 2006 Bulgaria ranked second in Europe in terms of real estate price growth. It was expected that in early 2007, after the country's accession to the EU, a correction would begin, but nevertheless prices continued to rise throughout 2007.
The trend of the year
Euphoria
In 2007, every conceivable market was growing, and growth rates were often measured in the tens of percent per year. As is often the case, buyers, inspired by calculations of future profits, forgot about caution and that any market is cyclical and cannot grow forever. The alarming events in the United States then seemed to be a private problem of the American market. Many of the purchases made that year at the peak of prices brought investors losses and disappointment.
Quote of the year
The boom in the Dubai real estate market will continue until the end of this decade, according to the results of a study published in the Economic Handbook of the Middle East (Meed). According to them, the demand for real estate will outstrip the supply at least until 2010.
Real Estate News, No. 10, July – August 2007
Country of the year
Montenegro
This is the first country in which Russians began to dominate the real estate market among all foreign buyers, and it happened in 2007. Little Montenegro was literally overwhelmed by Russian demand for resort housing – and prices, of course, shot up. It is worth noting that the quality of the real estate available on the market at that time did not correspond at all to its increased value.
Opening of the year
The Baltic States
The speed at which the economies of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia developed in the middle of the decade was watched with surprise by the whole of Europe. The term "Baltic tigers" has even been coined to describe this phenomenon. Real estate markets were also growing to match the entire economy. At that time, no one thought that this rise was connected with subprime loans for the local population, similar to those that brought down the American market, but issued on more oppressive terms.
Achievements of Homes Overseas
The thickest numbers
It was in 2007 that Homes Overseas released its thickest numbers, the volume of which reached 256 stripes, and the weight – up to 850 g.
Memoirs of the Expert Council
Valeria Mozganova, head of the Real Estate department at Business FM radio
station 2007 was a year that brought a lot of new things: we then eagerly discussed what awaits Bulgaria, which joined the EU, whether the Russia-EU agreement would lead to the abolition of the visa regime, how Cyprus would survive the transition to the euro, whether Russians were interested in the mortgage that appeared in Turkey… But the main thing is that we talked about the real estate market as something unshakable, which the local mortgage crisis in the United States can hardly be a direct threat to. The punishment for our naivety did not have to wait very long.
