AAA Apartment for rent
Last year apartment rents soared by 25 %. The current year will not be worse. It’s a common knowledege that for property rentiers the last three years were a dream come true. Those who rented a flat, especially a two bedroom one, could peacefully watch their earnings grow. Rents skyrocketed by 80 % in some cities. For example in Wrocław monthly rental payment for two bedroom apartment was 1100 PLN in January 2006. Today it reached 1890 PLN. Nevertheless, the highest growth of rents cuold be observed in the capital of Poland – monthly payments rose from 1300 PLN to 2341 PLN in three years. Last year alone rents grew by 25 % across the country. The question is if after a few boom years we can still expect further growths. Future profits of rentiers depend on the situation in the residential market. At the moment the prospects are bright. Each month a significant number of apartments is sold. High finishing standard of those flats means that their owners will look for higher income from rents, which will increase average rental payments. Such a scenario occurred in Targówek and Tarchomin, were the prices rose by 33,8 and 22,9% respectively due to completion of many reidential projects. However, flats of low standard, located in communist-era apartment blocks or in the outskirts of the city will not bring high income from rent to their owners. Costs of renting apartments located in the same city may vary depending on the district. The biggest differences in rents are observed in Warsaw ranging from 6000 PLN for high standard twobedroom apartment with a garage in great location to 1600 PLN for flat of similar size in a block in the outskirts. Interestingly enough, price range is also wide in Łódź, were the tenant pays 1000 PLN for two-bedroom apartment of low standard and even 5000 PLN for new one. This spring should keep the owners of properties located in Wrocław, Gdańsk and Katowice in good moods. During last six months rents went up by more than 10% in those cities and nothing indicates that this growing trend would stop, which makes a flat in those locations worth investing in. Gdańsk is an unquestionable leader in this matter, where the cost of renting a studio apartment grew by 23,4% at the end of last year. In Cracow rental payments for three bedroom flat leaped by 14 %. Also Wrocław witnessed a significant rise of 13% comparing to the last quarter of 2007. Renting a three room apartment costs 24% more than in previous period, whereas a studio apartment only 3,7% more. Moreover, an inflow of employees from another cities to Wrocław is noticeable and will surely continue, increasing rental apartment demand. An apartment in smaller city, especially an academic centre is also a good investment opportunity. A good example is Białystok where the rent for the studio apartment amounts to 800 PLN, a two bedroom one – 1200. A year ago tenants paid only 600 PLN for three rooms in Białystok. Taking into consideration students and employees coming to Białystok and looking for a place to live it’s no wonder that the prices soared. Unemployment rate fell by 10%, wages increased and rental apartments are hard to find. Those factors contributed to the high level of rents, altough the prices of square metre in Białystok are still moderate comparing to Warsaw. One thing is for sure – renting a flat will not bring loss. Rental apartment as an investment also pays off in long term perspective. At the moment costs of renting an apartment in Poland are only half of those in Europe. Renting 50 square metres in Madrid, Barcelona or Dublin is an expense equal to 3500-4200 PLN monthly. Of course salaries in Europe are also higher but
as we expect salaries in Poland to reach European level, we should also be prepared for hihger rents. A case of Spain proves that an apartment is a safe investment opportunity. The year 2003 saw a record growth of the prices of new apartments for sale in Spain. Next four years the rents grew by 10% annualy. The conclusion is that buying an apartment even at the highest price can be a profitable investment.