Of the 8 EECFA countries, the highest growth of permitted m2 of buildings in 2019 was recorded in Ukraine. Both the multi-unit residential segment and non-residential buildings witnessed much higher permitted floor area than a year ago; almost 40% and 60%, respectively.
In the meantime, Turkey experienced a further massive drop. After permit halved in 2018, it halved again in 2019.
On the Balkans, Croatia and Serbia have the highest growth with both countries having registered an around 15% expansion driven by the residential segment.
Some countries like Bulgaria and Slovenia recorded a shrinkage, but both countries’ permitted m2 of buildings in 2019 was beyond the 2015-2019 average.
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A boom in residential construction is underway in Ljubljana, Slovenia, having a knock-on effect on real-estate prices in the whole country. It will still not be enough to change the trend of rising residential real estate prices and rents. To offset the unaffordable luxury apartments, there is a national policy to build public housing.
Written by Dr. Ales Pustovrh – Bogatin, EECFA Slovenia
Residential boom in Ljubljana, Slovenia – but can people afford luxury apartments?
After almost a decade of the worst crisis in residential construction in the history of Slovenia, residential construction has turned the corner. Most of it is due to very ambitious plans for constructing new multi-dwelling units in the capital city of Ljubljana. Several smaller developments of luxury residential properties commenced in 2018 and 2019, but their prices are usually too high to impact the price level and availability of housing in the whole city. While a total of almost 1500 new residential units are in planning phase or under construction currently in Ljubljana, only 500 will be completed before the end of 2020 – and most of them will be prized in the luxury range of EUR 4500 – 6000 per square meter, and thus, inaccessible for the majority of the population.
Even so, demand is likely higher. Before the crisis, an average of 1500 units was sold annually in Ljubljana. With the much-improved economic situation in Slovenia, full employment and easily accessible credit, demand for apartments, in Ljubljana in particular, has very likely returned to that level. Reasonably priced apartments for young families are especially in short supply due to lack of new construction.
The latest EECFA Slovenia Construction Forecast Report with analysis and forecast on the housing market up to 2021 can be ordered on EECFA’s website
Public housing scheme – is it viable?
For that reason, both the local municipality and the national government decided to significantly increase the construction of public housing. They have started the construction of 672 new dwellings at the Novo Brdo neighbourhood that will be completed in 2 years. The National Housing Fund of the Republic of Slovenia, which is building 498 of them, has obtained a loan of EUR 50 million from the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) for the construction of more than 800 dwellings across Slovenia, most of them in the Novo Brdo development in the western part of Ljubljana. The local municipality of Ljubljana will construct another 174 dwellings. All of them will be available for rent with rental prices of EUR 6-8 per sqm. The size of the dwellings will be between 30 and 80 sqm. The total value of this construction investment will be EUR 56.8 million.
There are plans to add thousands more dwellings in the next few years – 10000 new dwellings available for rent to young families by 2025 according to the national housing policy. If the policy proves to be successful, it will increase the supply of dwellings in Ljubljana by almost 10%. This would certainly have a major effect on real estate prices in Ljubljana. As Ljubljana represents more than half of the residential market in Slovenia, it also acts as an anchor for residential prices and rents – so a higher supply and lower prices of dwellings in Ljubljana would lower demand for dwellings in the rest of Slovenia as well.
