Housing price increase is gaining momentum
The Ober-Haus Lithuanian apartment price index (OHBI), which records changes in apartment prices in the five major Lithuanian cities (Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, Šiauliai and Panevėžys), increased by 1.9% in March 2021 (0.9% increase was recorded in February 2021). The annual apartment price growth in the major cities of Lithuania was 7.2% (the annual apartment price growth in February 2021 was 5.3%).
In March 2021 apartment prices in the capital grew 2.2% with the average price per square meter reaching EUR 1,766 (+38 EUR/sqm). Apartment prices in Kaunas, Klaipėda, Šiauliai and Panevėžys in March grew by 1.2%, 1.6%, 2.7% and 2.4% respectively with the average price per square meter reaching EUR 1,224 (+15 EUR/sqm), EUR 1,211 (+19 Eur/sqm), 831 (+22 EUR/sqm) and EUR 813 (+19 EUR/sqm).
In the past 12 months, the prices of apartments grew in all major cities: 7.8% in Vilnius, 4.9% in Kaunas, 6.2% in Klaipėda, 10.4% in Šiauliai and 10.5% in Panevėžys.
“At the end of 2020/start of 2021, it seemed that after a sluggish period in mid-2020, we saw an instantaneous sales price rise, yet the performance in March 2021 shows that the price increase is accelerating. Looking at historical data, the monthly almost 2% increase in apartment prices is exceptional, because the last time such a monthly increase was recorded in the country’s cities only in 2007. The relatively high overall price change in March was due to the faster rise in prices in all major cities across various apartment segments.
This year we can see a faster increase in apartment prices in the segment of new housing. For example, in Q1 2021 the prices of older apartments in Vilnius, Kaunas and Klaipėda increased by 2.7–3.8% and the prices of new apartments in these cities increased by 3.7–4.9%. Every day, we witness rapid increase in the expectations of sellers and how the increasing prices of apartments still attract buyers. In particular, this is obvious in the new apartment segment, where there is a supply shortage at the moment and developers are sometimes unable to respond to the changing market situation. As a result, buyers looking for new homes in Vilnius face challenges. Due to the lack of apartments in already completed projects, they are forced to choose apartments in the planned projects or projects that have recently started.
The rising apartment prices in the cities are not exclusive to Lithuania. Similar trends can be observed across Europe. According to Eurostat, in Q4 2020, a total annual increase of 5.7% in home sales prices was recorded in 27 EU countries, which is the fastest increase since 2007.
This year’s record-breaking transactions for the acquisition of new homes in the capital city give reason to predict even faster increase in home prices later when the transactions are finalized and official statistics will record impressive amounts of cash. Thus, looking at the current situation in the European and Lithuanian housing market, it seems that the price increase is gaining momentum,” Raimondas Reginis, Research Manager for the Baltics at Ober-Haus, said.
Full review (PDF): Lithuanian Apartment Price Index, March 2021
Latest news
All news
A more favourable house price to wage ratio for buyers in 2023 and 2024
Ober-Haus Apartment Price Index for Lithuania (OHBI), which captures changes in apartment prices in the five largest Lithuanian cities (Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, Šiauliai and Panevėžys), increased by 0.2% in February 2024. The overall level of apartment prices in Lithuania's major cities has grown by 2.2% over the last 12 months (annual growth of 2.1% in January 2024). In February 2024, the sales prices of apartments in Vilnius, Kaunas and Klaipėda grew by 0.3%, 0.3% and 0.1%, respectively, and the average price per square metre amounted to EUR 2,589 (+8 Eur/m²), EUR 1,751 (+6 Eur/m²) and EUR 1,651 (+1 Eur/m²). Meanwhile, Šiauliai recorded a 0.2% decrease in apartment prices in February, with the average price per square metre amounting to EUR 1,095 (-3 Eur/m²). In Panevėžys, the average price per square metre remained unchanged at EUR 1,075 per square metre. Over the year (February 2024 compared to February 2023), apartment prices grew in all major cities of the country: in Vilnius - by 1.8%, in Kaunas - by 3.2%, in Klaipėda - by 3.0%, in Šiauliai - by 1.7%, and in Panevėžys - by 1.8%. "Although the cold snap that has gripped the country's housing market is not going away yet,…
The cumulative effect of several years of housing market activity decline, suggests around 40% lower construction volumes in 2024
Over the past few years in Lithuania, we have seen a rapid decline in housing market activity, which has impacted the volume of new housing developments. However, apartment building developers in the country’s major cities have been facing the toughest challenges lately, with very modest apartment sales figures in the period 2022–2023. According to Ober-Haus, compared to the record activity of 2021, in 2023, the sales of apartments in the primary market were down by 68% in Vilnius, 55% in Kaunas, and 57% in Klaipėda. “Despite the two- to three-fold decrease in the sales of newly-built apartments, a very high number of apartments were nevertheless completed in the country’s major cities in 2023, because the development of these projects had begun during 2021 and 2022,” said Raimondas Reginis, Head of Market Research for the Baltics at Ober-Haus. According to Ober-Haus, in 2023, developers in Vilnius built 4,915 apartments for sale – 18% more than in 2022. When considering the last two decades, this is one of the highest figures, second only to those in 2007, 2008 and 2020, when more than 5,000 apartments were built for sale. In 2023, 52 different apartment projects (including ongoing project phases) were available for…
Building permit for the construction of the housing project Vilniaus Džiazas has been obtained
Unique Properties, a real estate development company, has received a permit and started the construction of the Vilniaus Džiazas project in K. Vanagėlio Street in Vilnius Old Town. K. Vanagėlio str. 11 and 18, which consists of a two-storey apartment building with 62 apartments and 11 commercial premises, a 1200 sqm administrative cultural heritage object of interwar construction and public spaces. The project will feature apartments with 4,5 m high ceilings and 4 m high stained-glass windows, the ground floor will have private patios and access to a garden, while the second and third floors will have balconies and the last floor will have private terraces. According to Gediminas Tursa, CEO of Unique Properties, Vilniaus Džiazas aims to revitalise a part of the Old Town that was undeservedly forgotten during the Soviet era, and to reconnect it with the Rasa. The complex not only includes an open and lively commercial street along the north-south axis, but also new pedestrian and cycling connections to the railway station. "After obtaining the building permit, the company received a lot of interest from interested parties and within a couple of weeks it sold several more apartments - currently Vilniaus Džiazas has signed about 20…
All news