Photo: PixabayThe average price of a square meter in Belgrade three years ago was around 1,600 euros, and now it has reached 2,285 euros. In just one year, on average, a square meter in the capital is more expensive by around 200 euros. The latest data from the Republic Geodetic Institute show that in city municipalities it is almost impossible to find a square meter in a new building for less than 2,000 euros, while the most expensive square meters are sold in Belgrade Waterfront for more than 10,000 euros.
At the city level, prices are higher by about 10 percent compared to the same period last year, but the jump in some municipalities is much higher. The most significant price increase was recorded in New Belgrade, where apartments have risen in price by as much as 29 percent in one year, so it is necessary to spend an average of 600 euros more per square meter! Last year, the average was 2,040, and now it is 2,635 euros. In this municipality, there was also the highest demand for apartments in new construction, and 325 sales contracts were concluded, and real estate agents say that the expected jump in prices is due to demand, because during the third quarter of 2019, half as many apartments were sold, that is, all 145.
"We sell ready-made apartments, under construction, but also those in the foundations, the construction of which has just begun." There is no question of a drop in prices because, based on the data on issued construction permits, it is clear that fewer buildings will be built, which means that there will be fewer apartments on offer, and the demand remains the same. It's an inelastic demand and prices will go up, and it's a vicious circle that won't stop so easily," says appraiser Milić Đoković from Real Estate Cluster.
Djokovic says that real estate prices also follow the trend of inflation and that this is a world tendency, but he says that he does not expect that the growth trend will be stopped in the next two years.
"In America, the market is calming down, which is not bad for us, but we are two to three years behind them, so it can be expected that after that period there will be a cooling down here as well." Until then, it can be expected that the price per square meter will increase further," Milić Đoković believes.
He notes that currently only in Resnik, in the municipality of Rakovica, you can still find a square meter below 2,000 euros, as well as in several other settlements on the outskirts of the city, such as Zemun polje and Sremčica.
"Surčin came to 1,500 euros, Ledine is almost 2,000, as well as Mirijevo, while Višnjička banja is even above that figure. We are a shallow market, investors have nowhere to invest their money and as long as this is the case, we will have an increase in the price of square meters. This year, the turnover on the real estate market is expected to exceed 7 billion euros in 2022, which is the historical maximum in Serbia, because last year it was around 6.2 billion," Đoković points out.
The total number of sales on the real estate market in the third quarter was 34,503, which is 0.9 percent less than in the same period last year. On the other hand, the amount of money has increased, from 1.5 billion to 1.7 billion euros. Observed by quarter, compared to 2018 and 2019 and the period before the corona virus epidemic, the amount of money on the real estate market has almost doubled.
Miloš Mitić from the City Expert agency tells Euronews Serbia that, in general, the prices of new buildings are rising in all neighborhoods, especially since March, when all construction inputs have become more expensive.
"Now almost all Belgrade municipalities have a price per square meter of 2,000 euros and more. We can exclude the part of Krnjača and Borča, which is still under 2,000, and there you can still find a square for 1,400 to 1,500 euros. In Rakovica and a part of Miljakovac, as well as in Jajinci, it can be found below that price," says Mitić.
The list of more favorable locations, which is getting shorter, also includes parts of Zemun, but Mitić says that they are also close to the price of 2,000 euros, that is, they cost up to 100 euros less per square meter.
"In most municipalities and settlements, they are far above 2,000 euros, especially in the very center of the city." In Vračar, in the narrower part of Zvezdara, in New Belgrade, Senjak and Stari Grad, it cannot be bought for less than 2,500 euros in new construction. The extremes are condominiums that additionally drag the average and Belgrade Waterfront. Those large projects raise the average additionally, and a square meter there costs over 3,000 euros," says Mitić.
He says that small apartments are the most sought after, because many people buy them as an investment or simply want to preserve the value of their money and therefore invest in real estate.
"In every variant, a smaller apartment is more liquid. Very often people reserve their real estate while the building is still in the project or the foundation has just been laid. The most favorable prices are immediately after obtaining the construction permit," says the interlocutor of Euronews Serbia.
According to RGZ data, the total volume of funds on the real estate market in Serbia in the third quarter is 1.7 billion euros, which is an increase of 10.6 percent compared to the same period in 2021. 935.2 million euros were spent on the sale of apartments, of which 579.6 million were spent on the territory of the city of Belgrade.
Apartments accounted for 57 percent of the total real estate market. A total of 171.1 million euros were spent on the sale of houses, cottages and residential buildings, 122 million euros on construction land, 66.8 million euros on business premises, and 52.5 million euros on agricultural land.
Source: euronews.rs
