HOUSE prices jumped by up to 17 per cent over the past year, and should keep rising until the end of the years, according to a leading property seller.
At a news conference yesterday, BuySell presented its
home price index and asking price index, collating figures for the purchase of property in Cyprus since 2002. Speaking at the news conference, economist Dr Stelios Platis said the home price index was based on the sales of housing units per month in the free areas (around 200-300), while the asking price index was based on the listings of houses for sale per month (around 700-800). “The two indices are the most accurate barometer of the Cyprus property market and could be considered as the most effective tool of every buyer, seller or investor in property,” he said. “The creation of the indices will attract the attention of foreign investors who until today did not have the possibility to study or trust the Cyprus property market.” Platis said that based on the indices, the asking price of housing units in Cyprus fell significantly — by 4.2 per cent — in February 2004 compared with the month before.
When it came to the actual selling price, this drop fell to 2.6 per cent, but prices were on the increase in March. “March saw a complete U-turn in prices, with the price indices recording a rise in prices of up to 9.9 per cent on the asking price and a 5.7 per cent in the selling prices compared to February,” Platis said.
“During the month of the referendum in April, the indices settled, recording a rise of 0.3 per cent while selling prices fell significantly by 3.3 per cent.
“In May, when the island entered the EU, property prices went back up to 5.2 per cent compared to the lower prices in April, while in June, we recorded almost equivalent rises both in the selling price at 3.7 and 2.5 percent respectively, bringing the total rise on selling prices for the month to 8.6 per cent and 7.7 on the local property purchase market.”
But BuySell added a note of caution, saying that the sale of houses since May 1 had been hindered by the government’s failure to clarify a new tax package on property.
“People are being left in the dark when it comes to the VAT on property because the government themselves are clueless on whether they will implement the new VAT or not,” General Manager Philippos Nikiforou said.
Nikiforou said that the majority of buyers on the island where foreign, with only about 30 per cent of Cypriots purchasing property. “Cypriots find it more difficult to purchase homes because they have to finance their property, so around 70 per cent of the buyers are foreign,” he said.
“Another problem is that the island has gotten a bad name, in the UK for example, because we have the problem with the visitor plates on cars.
“People come here, retire with their last savings ,and they purchase a car duty free, but now the government is forcing them to pay added VAT of 15 per cent,” he added. “These are the things that the government has to take care of because people talk to each other and the island is getting a bad name.”
