Cyprus Real Estate Sales Struggle Despite Deep Discounts

Deteriorating prices and deep discounts might have provided a temporary boost to Cyprus real estate sales, but it is a pessimistic sign for the year ahead. A proposal …

Deteriorating prices and deep discounts might have provided a temporary boost to Cyprus real estate sales, but it is a pessimistic sign for the year ahead. A proposal is also underway that would potentially open the Island’s property market to real estate agents across the EU. See the following article from Property Wire for more on this.

Property sales in Cyprus are starting to pick up but are still very slow, according to the latest figures published by the island’s Lands and Surveys Department.

On the face of it they show an increase of almost 30% last month compared with February 2009, but this represented just 704 contracts of sale, some 60% down on transactions in the same month in 2008.

Prices have been falling and some developers are offering discounts of up to 30% as an incentive to buyers and this has what is attracting people, according to Solomon Kourouklides, president of the Cyprus Real Estate Agents’ Association. But he added that these opportunities cannot go on for much longer and the real estate market faces a leveling off and perhaps even further dips.

Claim up to $26,000 per W2 Employee

  • Billions of dollars in funding available
  • Funds are available to U.S. Businesses NOW
  • This is not a loan. These tax credits do not need to be repaid
The ERC Program is currently open, but has been amended in the past. We recommend you claim yours before anything changes.

‘The latest increase is attributable to the opportunities in the market. Many Cypriot individuals and investors have bought properties from non-Cypriots or Cypriots who cannot pay off their loans. But these opportunities will run out. If the economic parameters remain the same, we believe that the market will remain at the save level as in 2009, while there is a possibility of a slight deterioration,’ he explained.

Meanwhile officials have taken the first steps towards a new law that will allow other European estate agents to operate in Cyprus.

A new draft law is to be put before Parliament to bring the island’s existing estate agent’s laws into line with other EU countries. It has been prompted by an EU inquiry that said Cyprus’ restrictive practices penalized estate agents from other EU member states wishing to practice on the Island.

Changes to the existing law relate to the establishment of companies as real estate agents, the professional qualifications of real estate agents, the provision of services by real estate agents situated in other European Union member states and the examination that EU real estate agents must take if they wish to settle in Cyprus.

It will mean that EU agents will be able to register with the Estate Agents Registration Council providing they prove that they have a minimum of five years experience in the industry. A copy of the draft law has also been sent to the European Commission.

This article has been republished from Property Wire. You can also view this article at
Property Wire, an international real estate news site.

advertisement

Does Your Small Business Qualify?

Claim Up to $26K Per Employee

Don't Wait. Program Expires Soon.

Click Here

Share This:

In this article