In the first half of 2011, apartment sales in Vilnius increased by 8 percent.

According to preliminary data from the Center of Registers, over 2,700 apartments were sold in Vilnius in the first half of 2011, which is 8 percent more than in the first half of 2010.. Real estate developers in Vilnius sold more than 670 new apartments in the first half of this year. When comparing new apartment sales with the same period in 2010, sales volumes did not change.

In the first half of 2011, about 110 apartments were purchased directly from real estate developers per month. Since the beginning of the year, sales of new construction apartments in the primary market of Vilnius have remained stable. In June alone, housing sales in the primary market decreased by almost 28%. The greatest influence on the decrease, as every year, was seasonality, since buyers spend more time in the summer planning vacations than making large investments.

Almost 55% of new apartment sales in the first half of this year were made up of economy class apartments, the price of which currently ranges from 2800 to 4700 litas per square meter. Prices in this market sector have not changed since the beginning of the year. About 29% of new apartments sold were middle class, the prices of which range from 4700 to 6500 litas per square meter. Prices in this class increased by about 3%. During the first half of the year, the supply of middle class was supplemented by as many as 6 new projects, i.e. almost 450 new apartments. The remaining part, about 16% of new apartments sold, was luxury housing, the prices of which start from 6500 litas per square meter. Advertised prices in this sector increased by 2% during the first half of 2011.

According to Tomas Žiaugra, a market analyst at UAB “Eika”, real estate developers are currently offering about 1,500 new apartments in Vilnius. More than half, about 52% of the supply, are new apartments in apartment buildings that are still under construction. During the first half of 2011, the supply of new apartments in Vilnius decreased by 4%. “The supply of new apartments decreased slightly during the first six months of this year, by only 70 apartments, as the market was supplemented by about 600 apartments in new apartment buildings. It is likely that the supply of new apartments will not change for some time, as every month there are reports about new or continuing projects being developed. Buyers should not expect a price correction by the end of the year, as there will be no excess supply in the market,” says T. Žiaugra.

In the near future, the lack of choice of new apartments will be felt in the economy class, since no major new project will supplement the supply, except for the continuation of previous projects in Pilaitė, Lazdynai, Visoriai. Currently, the supply of economy class housing consists of 650 apartments, half of which are in the Pašilaičiai microdistrict. “The current market situation is exceptional, since the supply of economy class housing is lower than the average, although twice as many economy class apartments are sold. It seems that the situation will not change for some time and buyers looking for more expensive housing will have greater choice options,” says T. Žiaugra.

“The largest real estate developers with many years of experience were the most successful in selling apartments in 2011. For example, the four real estate development companies that recorded the largest sales in the first half of 2011 accounted for almost 53% of the new apartment sales market,” the market analyst calculates. According to T. Žiaugra, smaller real estate development companies currently do not risk starting large projects. Most often, apartment buildings with 15-30 apartments are built. This is an attempt to reduce the risk of lack of investment and shorten the duration of the project implementation. Larger projects are left to real estate developers with many years of experience and in a more stable financial situation.

Founded in 1992, the company “Eika” is one of the largest real estate development and construction groups in Lithuania. The group of companies consists of: UAB “Eika” – a leader in the real estate market, valued for its innovation, reliability and responsibility; UAB “Eikos statyba” – a construction company with extensive experience in the construction and renovation of administrative, public, commercial, industrial and residential buildings; UAB “Inžinerinės idėjos” – specialists in the design, installation and maintenance of engineering systems. The quality of the services of the group of companies is ensured by the implemented quality and environmental standards ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001:2004.