The local residential market has been on an upward trend since the second half of 2014, with an average quarterly growth of 2.4%. In the fourth quarter of 2014, apartment prices rose 4.2%.
“Although the residential market is quickly evolving and the prices continue to increase, the market is still below the 2008 level. At the moment, the market manages to absorb the price increase, given the high demand in big cities, stimulated by the favorable lending policy and the government-guaranteed mortgage lending First Home program,” said Dorel Nita, coordinator of real estate analysis department of Imobiliare.ro.
According to Imobiliare.ro, the upward trend of apartment prices can be partially explained by the dynamics of the demand-supply ratio. Thus, the total number of apartments put up for sale in Romania’s main six cities fell 33% in the first three months (Constanta -37%, Bucharest -35%), while the demand for apartments rose 16% countrywide (Brasov – 38%, Bucharest – 13%).