28.01.2025

What key economic indicators are influencing the Romanian real estate market in 2025, and how do you anticipate they will shape residential and commercial property demand?
Romania joined Schengen area, the highway network is starting to emerge, the large size of the market, energy production potential, geographic location and the reorientation of the EU leaders towards local EU production and raw materials sources, can turn Romania into The Place To Be for many real estate investors and developers. The residential demand is significant but it needs local authorities support in terms of public transportation/utilities/facilities. Especially in Bucharest metropolitan area the residential development is suffocated by poor traffic conditions, not by affordability or demand. Within the city there may be a lower development potential due to city mayor vision/related costs but the periphery is ready to develop aggressively once new access roads are built (ring road, radial roads, metro to Otopeni) and public transportation frequency is increased.
What trends are you observing in the mortgage market, particularly regarding interest rate preferences (fixed vs. variable), loan tenures, and affordability for first-time buyers?
The mortgage market seems to be accessible and if the interest rates will slightly decrease, the better. The default rate for mortgages is very low therefore banks will continue to focus on this segment which generates low risk, long term and steady income. Since mortgage financing in Romania is mostly done in RON you do not expect to see long term fixed rates for such loans. The banks are just teasing the buyers with 3-5 years fixed interest rate, which helps a lot the buyers but does not eliminate the interest rate for such long terms loans. In my opining the residential market is currently at a very good level, apartments are quite affordably considering the average wage / residential prices in Romania, with steady annual growth and with potential to continue developing for many years to come.
What are your company’s business targets in 2025?
We expect in 2025 a similar year with 2024, to increase the business with approximatively 10% and to continue attracting new medium size tenants who are no longer focused on prime office locations and are more oriented now on cost / benefit efficiency.