Photo: PixabayThe cost of renting an apartment in Serbia is rising, as the prices of square meters rise as well. Although the quantity of rental real estate on the market has increased, it is still clearly insufficient to meet demand, particularly in Belgrade, where the monthly rent has increased by more than 15 percent since last September. The most significant price increase occurred in the second part of last year. The average price of renting a furnished studio apartment in Belgrade in the first quarter of last year was around 260 euros, and at the end of the year it rose to 300 euros, according to the euronews.serbia portal.
Small apartments in central city municipalities, such as Vračar, Stari Grad, New Belgrade, Savski Venac and Zvezdara, are said to be the most requested according to real estate agencies, because of good connections between these municipalities and other parts of the city, such as places where faculties are located.
The average price of a studio apartment in the capital is around 270 euros, while the most expensive are small apartments on Savski Venac, where the monthly rent is over 350 euros. The cost of renting a studio flat in this central city municipality has climbed by more than 80 euros in the last year. Between the third and fourth quarters it increased in price from 290 euros to 350 euros at the end of the year. The price difference between renting a studio apartment in Stari grad and Savski Venac is only eight euros in favor of Savski Venac, but the price difference between renting a two-bedroom apartment in Savski Venac and Stari grad is as much as 167 euros. The rent prices of such properties in Čukarica and Rakovica are two times lower. Monthly rent for two-bedroom apartments on Savski Venac exceeded 650 euros, while it is around 500 euros in Stari grad and roughly 470 euros in New Belgrade and Vračar.
You can rent a two-bedroom apartment in Niš for the same monthly cost as a studio apartment in Belgrade, and two one-bedroom flats in Kragujevac for the same monthly rate as a studio apartment in Belgrade. Studios cost around 190 euros in Niš, 200 euros in Novi Sad, and 140 euros in Kragujevac, with one-bedroom flats costing between 10 and 20 euros more. A two-room apartment costs roughly 190 euros in Kragujevac, 270 euros in Niš, and 320 euros in Novi Sad, whereas a two-room flat in Belgrade costs around 450 euros on average.
Even in Belgrade municipalities, however, prices are not uniform, despite the fact that they are all higher than last year. Rental prices are lower in towns outside of the city center, therefore a one-bedroom apartment in Čukarica costs around 180 euros, while two-bedroom apartments cost around 350 euros. One-bedroom flats in Palilula and Voždovac range from 260 to 280 euros, while two-bedroom apartments cost around 380 euros. Rakovica has the best monthly rent, with one-bedroom flats costing roughly 165 euros on average and two-bedroom apartments costing around 250 euros.
Low interest rates on loans, high rental costs, and some people’s impression that they must pay to keep their money in the bank due to low interest rates on savings, caused the real estate market eruption in Serbia last year. When it came to the number of properties sold and the amount of money paid for them, all records were smashed.
This has made it more difficult for subtenants to obtain their own square meter. Analysts point out that investors are making situation more difficult for people willing to buy their own house.
According to the latest data from the Republic Geodetic Authority, the prices of flats in Belgrade grew by 16 percent in the old building and by 11 percent in the new building over the course of a year. A 50-square-meter flat in an ancient building in the capital cost an average of 66,500 euros two years ago, but today it costs over 83,500 euros. In the new builds, real estate of the same square footage could have been purchased for roughly 88,000 euros in 2019, when the price of an average square meter was 1,760 euros, however now the average price per square meter in Belgrade is 1,983 euros, and an apartment costs around 99,000 euros.
Source: euronews.serbia
