House prices continue to rise

House prices are growing twice as fast as before the pandemic, according to the price observatory of Geoaxis.

The property services company has found that in the third quarter of the year the asking prices for newly built apartments recorded an increase of 8.37% year-on-year as well as an 11.15% rise from the same quarter in 2019. Older apartments posted a smaller rise, at 6.25% on an annual basis and at 10.65% compared to two years earlier.

In its analysis, the chartered surveyors company notes that the growth in residential property values is set to continue over the next 12 months at least, albeit at a slower pace. A key reason that has accelerated the price rise of new houses concerns the considerable increase of construction costs in recent months, which is being incorporated into sale prices.

The course of asking rates is such that prices have more than recovered the losses of recent years. In most areas of Attica the asking prices for new houses are now even higher than in 2013.

The Geoaxis data reveal that in Ampelokipi a new apartments is currently on sale at a rate of 2,000 euros per square meter, against €1,800/sq.m. in 2013, while in Maroussi the current rate is €2,267/sq.m., against €2,060/sq.m. in 2013. A similar picture is seen in Palaio Faliro (€2,465/sq.m. against €2,330/sq.m.) and Holargos (€2,785/sq.m. against €2,685/sq.m.).

Among the districts with the highest rise in asking prices for new houses on an annual basis are Ampelokipi (up 10.35%), Palaio Faliro (9%), Maroussi (8.75%), Holargos (7.5%) and Peristeri (6.25%). Regarding older houses, Holargos, Ampelokipi and Maroussi post a 6.25% yearly growth in prices, just ahead of Palaio Faliro and Peristeri with 6.2%.

According to Geoaxis founder Giannis Xylas, “the gradual transformation of apartments into workplaces too is expected to bring huge changes to the design and construction of houses. Flats will soon be added to investment companies’ portfolios.”