One in three apartments taken off the market

One third of one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments were withdrawn from sale last month, according to the Anunturiparticulari.ro web portal. Statistics compiled by the portal show that the apartment market declined by 42 percent for studio apartments, by 35 percent for one and two-bedroom apartments, and by 21 percent for three-bedroom apartments.

The decline in sales offers, due to a drop in prices, is changing the trend on the rental segment, which registered significant growth lately. Apartment owners are not willing to sell at lower prices, and prefer to rent their properties.

The trend is most visible on the luxury segment. "The Real estate recession is leading to a diversified supply of luxury homes for rent," said DTZ Echinox real estate advisory company consultant, Oana Lungu. Among owners who are offering properties for rent are those who acquired apartments and villas in the best areas last year, renovating these, and hoping for the best moment to put these up for sale. However, the lower sales yield has determined them to forego selling and to decide to rent them out instead.

Along with a decline in the housing supply, sales are also dropping. During the last three editions of the tIMOn national real estate fair, organized in September, October and December 2008, sales amounted to 0.1-0.2 percent of a supply of some 10,000 units. This shows that the housing market is facing a deadlock.

Business Standard