This spring, the real estate developer completed a EUR4.5 million investment in an 84-apartment block located on the site of former Frigocom plant of Bucharest’s Militari district. It began works for another two blocks within the same project around one month ago, after getting a EUR3.3 million loan from Garanti Bank.
The two blocks, that are due for completion next April, will each have 84 apartments, and investments needed are estimated at EUR8 million.
“For funding we mortgaged the first building to Garanti for a EUR3.3 million loan, and we will reinvest the money we get from the sale of apartments in the project,” Antoanela Comsa, general manager of West Development company, part of Gran Via group, told ZF.
According to Comsa, 25 housing units have been sold so far from the first block of the project, called Timisoara 58. Clients particularly buy through the First Home scheme and other type of leu loans and a large part of them move from old block apartments to the 3-room apartments of the project, where prices range between EUR66,000 and EUR90,000.
Gran Via invested around EUR120 million in the boom period of the real estate market to acquire three land plots in the western area of Bucharest and a land plot in Constanta, but delayed construction works after the crisis onset.
“The housing market is and will be better as there is demand for apartments. In 2015, we want to start works for a block in Lujerului area and in Moinesti. It is a good time to build as we get better conditions when we negotiate material acquisitions for three blocks at once,” stated Gran Via representative.
According to National Statistics Institute data, 1,498 new housing units were completed in the first quarter of this year in Bucharest-Ilfov area, up 65% on the year and close to the boom period level, considering between 1,500 and 1,700 new houses and apartments were delivered in the first three months of 2007-2009.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)