The asking rental prices for new apartments in Bucharest continued their upward trend in the third quarter of this year, compared to the same period last year, as revealed by the joint analysis of Premier Estate Management and Imobiliare.ro. The analysis takes into account the prices requested for apartments built between 2019-2022 based on 10,146 rental ads listed in Imobiliare.ro.
The growth recorded for the low-market, mass-market, medium, medium-high, premium and luxury segments is 13 percent compared to the third quarter of last year and 7 percent compared to the previous quarter of this year. Thus, in this quarter, the average prices per useful square meter vary between 7.5 euros for the cheapest segment of new homes and 20 euros for homes in the luxury segment.
LOW-MARKET – 24% INCREASE
The areas with the cheapest rents in Bucharest registered the highest growth in the market compared to the previous year, namely 24 percent. The phenomenon is mainly caused by the decrease in credit accessibility for potential buyers of this market. The rent for this segment has an average value of 7.5 euros/sqm (approximately 340 euros for a two-room apartment with a usable area of 45 sqm). The areas considered are Ghencea, Militari and Rahova.
MASS-MARKET – 9% GROWTH
The affordable housing segment (mass-market) had the lowest growth compared to the other market segments. Compared to the same period last year, in the June-September period of this year, the requested rental prices increased by 9 percent, and compared to the previous quarter by only 2 percent. For example, for a two-room apartment with a usable area of 50 sqm, the average rent requested is 400 euros, meaning an average price per sqm of 8 euros.
The areas analyzed in this segment include Berceni, Drumul Taberei, Ozana, Păcii, Theodor Pallady and Titan.
MIDDLE SEGMENT – 13% GROWTH
As for the average housing segment, with average asking prices of 9.5 euros/useful sqm, there is an increase of 13 percent in the third quarter of the current year compared to the third quarter of last year, and of 6 percent compared to the previous months. A two-room apartment in a new building, with an area of 52 sqm, is rented for an average price of 500 euros.
The areas analyzed in this segment include Bucureștii Noi, Crângași, Dristor, Iancului, Mihai Bravu, Pantelimon and Vitan.
UPPER MIDDLE SEGMENT – 9% GROWTH
In the July-September period of this year, the prices requested in the medium-upper/medium-high segment experienced an increase compared to 2021 of 9 percent and 4 percent compared to the previous quarter. The rent for this segment has an average value of 11 euros/sqm (about 560 euros for a two-room apartment with a usable area of 52 sqm).
The areas analyzed in this segment include Băneasa, Carol Park, Timpuri Noi and Tineretului.
PREMIUM SEGMENT – 11% GROWTH
The premium segment, i.e., new dwellings located in Aviaţiei, Dacia, Eminescu, Romană, Universitate and Victoriei areas, experienced an 11 percent price increase in the third quarter of this year compared to the similar quarter of 2021 and a significant increase compared to previous months, namely 13 percent. For this segment, the average price per usable sqm amounts to 13 euros, for a two-room apartment with an area of 55 sqm, reaching an average of 710 euros.
LUXURY SEGMENT – 15% GROWTH
As for the luxury segment – properties with prices on average of 20 euros/useful square meter, there is an appreciation of 15 percent compared to last year, respectively 9 percent in the July-September period compared to the previous months. For a two-room apartment with a usable area of 60 sqm, the average rental price is 1,200 euros.
The areas analyzed in this segment include Aviatorilor, Dorobanţi, Floreasca, Herăstrău, Kiseleff and Nordului.
“The increase in the cost of living and utilities, together with the increase in loan costs, has led to a reorientation of buyers of new apartments, at least for the time being, towards the option of renting a property, which has determined a constant increase in asking prices for rent. These factors, combined with the decreasing supply of new apartments in Bucharest, predicted by the blockage of PUZs and the still high construction costs, can only indicate an estimate of the increase in rents requested in this market” explains Andreea Comșa, Managing Director, Premier Estate Management.
“The need for housing does not disappear, only the way we relate to it changes, depending on the socio-economic context in which we find ourselves. After two years of pandemic restrictions that generated fundamental changes in the labour market through the general appetite for telework, as well as through the online organization of the academic year, which decreased the appetite for rents, but also their value by up to 20 percent, we can observe that this segment returns to our attention, registering significant increases, recovering all the decrease recorded in 2020 and 2021, with the return to the office and classrooms, but also under the impact of the increase in the acquisition cost. Being given this high demand, the increase in housing taxes, taxes on rental income and the cost of living, in general, is already impacting the value of the monthly rent and there is little chance that things will stop here,” emphasizes Daniel Crainic, Director of Marketing, Imobiliare.ro.
