How Do Prices In The Big Cities Compare?

Flats in existing buildings went for the msot money in Debrecen. The average price per square metre in the city stands at 215,000 forints, but prices reach as high as 380,000 forints per square metre. Accommodation is barely cheaper in Veszprem, where prices stand at 212,000 forints a square metre on average. There are huge developments underway in the city, as in Gyor. Gyor is home to the largest property development in the country - a new, 43-hectare quarter being built by the Engel Group, which will consist of almost 5,000 dwellings.

The market is lively in Debrecen and Nyiregyhaza, at the other end of the country. In these areas, local and foreign buyers - especially Ukrainians - are buying flats in cash. Since there is a shortage of sites for developments in Debrecen, prices in neighbouring communities are converging with those in Debrecen.

The division between traditionally pricier Transdanubia and the Lowlands seems to be becoming vaguer. Prices in Pecs and Kecskemet reach above 200,000 forints per square metre. Average prices do not necessarily reflect the true situation. There are very few properties for sale in towns in Baranya county, and dwellings in the historic centres of towns sell for a fortune. In the old citadel, prices per square metre exceed 400,000 forints per square metre.

Prices start at between 115,000 and 140,000 forints a square metre in almost all cities. Gyor is the only exception, where prices start at 156,000 forints - with newbuilds pushing up prices across the board, since linked infrastructural investments drive up prices everywhere. Old socialist-style blocks of flats are an exception to this. Like in other towns, Gyor's 'panel houses' are a stagnant market. In Miskolc and Nyiregyhaza, flats sell for 113,000-114,000 forints per square metere, while prices are as low as 125,000-130,000 forints per square metre in Zalaegerszeg, Szeged and Pecs. Prices start at 135,000 forints a square metre in Veszprem, Debrecen and Kecskemet, with nothing available below this level.

In many cases, existing flats fetch the same price as newbuilds. In Varosret, the new quarter being built in Gyor, new homes cost at least 300,000 forints a square metre, while existing flats cost the same. The situation is the same in Miskolc, where flats in prestigious districts fetch prices above 300,000 forints. In Debrecen, Veszprem and Zalaegerszeg, prestigious districts command prices of 340,000 to 380,000 forints, though things are slightly cheaper in Kecskemet, Szeged and Nyiregyhaza, where prices stand at 320,000 to 330,000 forints.

Newbuilds are most expensive in Debrecen, Miskolc and Gyor. In Debrecen, the surrounding suburbs are developing fasted, whereas Miskolc is seeing a boom in the city centre. Gyor has also changed enormously, and not just because of the new Varosret district. In Vizivaros, a 40 hectare plot is being filled with detached houses, terrace houses and blocks of flats - with some 1,000 separate dwellings eventually to be built. Several hundred new dwellings are being built in Menfocsanak and developments are also taking place on the banks of the Marcal."

Source: HVG