Briefly about the main
The real estate market of any country is greatly influenced by the standard of living of the population and the prospects for the development of the state. And Poland today is officially among the European leaders in many respects.
The record low unemployment rate, rising wages and low interest rates on mortgages are significant incentives for the development of the real estate market, strong demand and rising prices. Development activity in the country is very high: experts note that over the past three years, there has been a real boom in this area. The current economic situation in the country and the general mood of stability affect the fact that the inhabitants of Poland are not afraid to take on long-term obligations, such as a mortgage loan. The real estate market also receives funds from bank deposits and deposits of citizens. Labor migration of foreigners from the nearest neighboring countries to Poland is increasing. All this stimulates activity on the Polish real estate market for several years in a row.
Prices
As for prices, the most expensive housing in the country is located in Warsaw . It is followed by Krakow, the third place is shared between Wroclawl and Gdansk, the fourth is Poznan. On the contrary, the cheapest housing can be bought in the city of Lodz. Although, according to experts, the proximity of this city to Warsaw, as well as the intensive development of industry on its territory, can lead to an increase in property prices in Lodz in the next few years.
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Over the year to April 2018, the value of real estate in Poland increased by 7.5%. And for a number of projects, the growth rate is almost 17%. Such a good indicator is influenced by economic growth, a stable and strong exchange rate of the local currency - zloty. The dynamics of housing prices is stable and demonstrates natural growth. At the same time, as in any other country, prices differ depending on the region of the country. In the top five - Warsaw, Krakow, Wroclaw, Poznan and Gdansk - they are consistently high. Here, the cost of real estate in the primary and secondary market ranges from € 1,500 to € 3,000 per square meter, depending on the location of the object.
Buyer portrait
The main foreign investors in Polish real estate are Germans and Ukrainians. The Germans also show stable demand: they buy housing as an investment: prices are lower here than in Germany, and rental yields are higher. The same goes for Austrians, Swiss and Belarusians. Ukrainians are massively immigrating to Poland, which, according to official statistics, are leading in terms of the number of transactions. The Russians have not yet fully discovered the possibilities of the Polish real estate market: the demand from our compatriots here is small, it mainly falls on the residents of Kaliningrad.
Nevertheless, Russians are observing the purchase of housing in Poland as an investment - ranging from small investments in apartments for rent or "for renovation" with subsequent sale to large hotels.
Demand dynamics
2017 was a record year for the sales of residential real estate in Poland. On average, since 2013 inclusive, the number of transactions has been growing here by 20% per year. And, according to the results of the first few months of 2018, there is no decline in activity. The choice of investment method depends on the buyer's budget, the period for which he plans to invest. It should be noted that many investors purchase Polish real estate for the purpose of its subsequent transfer of real estate to management by management companies, which completely take over its maintenance, technical and financial lease processes, whether it is an ordinary apartment or a hotel by the sea.
Construction market
The number of residents per apartment in Poland is higher than in western Europe, while Poland still has a shortage of residential real estate. The state periodically creates housing programs, for example, "Housing for Youth", within the framework of which the volume of new investments in the construction sector has noticeably increased. Observing such dynamics of demand and good market opportunities, developers are significantly expanding the radius of their activities and launching more and more new projects.
Thus, the housing program Apartment Plus was created by the Polish authorities to support the construction of rental housing. Experts note that with rental rates below market rates and taking into account investments for several years, rental costs will decrease, and therefore apartments will become more affordable. Reducing rents on the one hand can lead to lower profits for investors. On the other hand, investors make money not only on the current lease, but also on the difference in price when selling. Therefore, a well-chosen investment will always pay off.
Rent
The highest rental rates in Europe at the moment are in Luxembourg, the Netherlands and France. In these countries, when renting real estate, you need to count on an income of € 20/1 sq. m. The lowest rates are in the Czech Republic, Romania, Lithuania, where the cost of renting an apartment is from € 6/1 sq. m. In Warsaw, the cost of a square meter of apartment rent is about € 12/1 sq. m, in Wroclaw, Krakow, Gdansk about € 9, and in Lodz - € 6.5.
The situation looks different if we trace the ratio of the cost per square meter of the monthly rental rate to the selling price. Taking into account only this parameter, the lowest profit from renting a square meter purchased is in Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany and Switzerland, where it is below 0.3%. Investment in the Netherlands looks the most profitable, more than 0.9%. Poland also looks attractive for investments, with a possible return on funds of approximately 0.6%.
The actual ROI is influenced by many factors, such as taxation, insurance, cost of credit, demand. From the point of view of a European resident, investments in Poland, and especially in Warsaw, look very attractive. This is confirmed by the fact that in 2017 foreigners (individuals and legal entities) purchased about 650,000 sq. m of residential real estate.
The HomesOverseas.ru portal would like to thank Natalia Zaitseva ( RE / MAX Experts ) and Taras Chernenko ( TAIRA) for their help in preparing this article.
