The number of house sales in Kosovo is falling

The sale and purchase of housing in Kosovo has decreased. The comparison of figures between 2022 and 2021 highlights that the number of housing sales has decreased. The price of housing in Kosovo ranges from 700 to 2,500 euros per square meter.

During 2022, the number of sales and purchases of residential properties in Kosovo has decreased.

This is revealed in the data of the Statistics Agency of Kosovo, which was also published by the GAP institute.

"The number of sales and purchases of residential properties in Kosovo in 2022 turns out to be lower than in 2021".

Only in Pristina during 2022 there were 2 thousand 576 sales, while a year earlier there were 2 thousand 799.

In Prizren during 2022 there were 272 sales and purchases, while in 2021 there were more than 100% more.

The official of the Democratic League of Kosovo, Berat Rukiqi, referring to this graph published by the GAP Institute, regarding the decline in the sale and purchase of residential properties, which he said shows the worsening economic situation in Kosovo, in the two years of the government of Kurti Government.

Rukiqi has warned of economic collapse if no investment is made.

"The decline in purchasing power and liquidity problems in businesses are a direct consequence of the government's inability to manage the crisis with rising prices and to implement public policies and projects (capital investments from the budget). If this trend of incompetence and mismanagement of public money (by not investing) continues, the economic collapse is not far away", wrote Rukiqi.

According to him, every negative trend in the construction and real estate sector has chain effects in most other sectors.

"This decline in property sales, among others, comes from: the decline in purchasing power (the impact of price increases on citizens) and the liquidity crisis (businesses have difficulties in making investments and covering expenses)".

During last year but also during this year for a new apartment in Pristina, depending on the location, the buyer has to pay from 900 euros to over 2,500 euros per square meter.

Prices are similar in Prizren - about 85 kilometers from the capital - while they are slightly lower in other cities, such as: Fushë Kosovë, Ferizaj, Gjilan and Pejë.

For comparison, one square meter of an apartment in Fushë Kosovë - six kilometers from Pristina - reached 650 euros and more in March 2022, from 500 the previous year. The price there remains the same.

Inflation, like elsewhere in the world, started to increase in 2021, as a result of the disturbances in the markets caused by the coronavirus pandemic, while it continued during 2022, especially after Russia started the invasion of Ukraine, in February of that year. the year.

The data of the Kosovo Statistics Agency (ASK) show that the average cost of construction in 2021 and 2022 has increased by up to 16 percent compared to 2020.

The Central Bank of Kosovo (CBK), in a report published in August of last year, predicted that the construction and real estate sector will face financial problems, due to the increase in product costs and price movements.

According to the report, the deterioration of the situation will become more evident, due to the "uncertainty in the behavior of the Kosovar diaspora". The Kosovo diaspora, according to the CBK, occupies the first place in terms of foreign investments, which are mainly made in real estate.

Out of over 600 million euros of foreign investments, which were made in the period January-October 2022, over 400 million euros went to the real estate sector. Monotori