When will the price per square meter decrease in Serbia?5 experts gave a clear answer.

Despite the global crisis that has significantly undermined the real estate market, practice shows that buyers do not shy away from purchasing residential properties even under such conditions. Newly built properties were sold in record time at prices exceeding the original by 30 percent, and demand did not cease for a moment. Given the current situation, experts believe there is no reason to think that this trend will not continue in the near future.

At the moment, we have sold about 500 apartments in Kopaonik, and none of the buyers have seen a decrease in property value; everyone has received a capital gain of around 30 percent. Additionally, owners can rent out the purchased apartments if they do not wish to use them for personal needs. Therefore, I expect demand to remain stable, and prices may stay at this level. Since interest rates on foreign currency deposits are low, I believe that over time, this portion of money will shift to the real estate market," says Milos Nedich, the founder of the Zoned Panorama project, who participated in a panel discussion organized by nekretnine.rs yesterday. He adds that they are currently experiencing a significant influx of buyers from America, Russia, the EU, as well as our compatriots working abroad, and this provides stable income, so he is confident that this will not change in the next 10 years. Milos Nedich believes that prices per square meter will not decrease in the near future - "That’s why we are investing so much in real estate in Kopaonik and Novi Sad, because we are confident in the stability of the market. I think there is no reason to say that sales have stopped," concludes Nedich. The price per square meter will slightly increase," says Nenad Đorđević, chairman of the Klaster nekretnine association. He states that in the near future, regarding prices per square meter, one can expect a pace similar to that since the beginning of the year, stabilization of prices and transaction volumes, as well as a slight increase in prices and transaction volumes compared to 2022 and 2021, and the same level of investments as in the last two years. "As long as the Euribor remains at this level and continues to rise, the number of buyers taking out loans will decrease, but on the other hand, the number of buyers financing property purchases in cash will remain at the same level, and likely higher, if rental prices remain at last year's levels, when they peaked, making it profitable for people to invest in real estate and earn from rentals. Essentially, nothing has changed this year compared to last year in the real estate market, except for the ongoing war in Ukraine and the disagreements in Kosovo, but everything else regarding our market has remained unchanged," emphasizes Đorđević. He notes that as a nation since World War II, we have been investing in real estate, and that during crises and sanctions, people bought real estate because it was a safe investment and always generated income. He points out that our real estate market then had more favorable prices than the countries in the region that were not at war, and that this trend continues today. Photo: Zoran Ilić / Ringier Nenad Đorđević expects prices per square meter to rise, but not at the pace seen in the previous three years. However, how prices will develop in this market depends on what happens in our society and state in the near future. It is also important to consider what will happen with the economy and whether interest rates will continue to rise. "The greatest impact on us could come from a significant increase in deposit interest rates, which would reduce our people's interest in this type of savings. If we look at the period of 2008, 2009, 2010, the main reason for the decline in the real estate market was that the limited deposit for a year was higher than the income you would receive from renting out property. And then that deposit increased sharply. A crisis from a major war could also have a significant impact. But in these crisis conditions, we see that people choose to invest in real estate rather than anything else," claims Đorđević. According to him, it is quite likely that this year prices in the real estate market will rise slightly, but not at the pace seen in the previous two years. However, he does not expect a sharp decline or stagnation in prices. "Real estate prices will rise at least as much as inflation in the Eurozone. In 2000 and 2001, we pegged real estate prices to foreign currency, and therefore we can expect that the price of real estate will rise at a slower pace than inflation in the Eurozone," concludes the expert.

Milic Djoković: A higher turnover raises the price per square meter.

Milic Djoković, a licensed appraiser and a permanent court expert in the field of economics and finance, says that market stabilization in terms of price factors is expected in the near future. "First of all, I expect a correct interaction between buyers and sellers, a slight increase in prices, and ultimately an increase in the number of transactions.

What do investors say about the price per square meter?

Alen Sadie, the director of United City Group, says that under these conditions, it is impossible to expect the cost per square meter of housing to be lower, considering the other expenses that investors have. "As a builder, I believe that state apartments priced at 500 or 600 euros per square meter can only exist on paper, because given the current land prices, which are much higher, it is impossible to reach such figures. I think there is no significant difference in demand that could lead to a change in current prices. They may vary by 10 percent up or down, but this only depends on the cost of money and has nothing to do with the square meter of the apartment, the price of the property, or supply and demand; it only relates to how much this currency is worth in relation to products, material values, and how it corresponds to the price per square meter. We are hoping for a good year," concludes Sadie.

Marko Ivić, the CEO of M enterijer gradnja, says that in major crises, investments in real estate cannot be wrong because this property will always retain its value. He believes in the stability of the real estate market. - Our large project began construction at a very specific moment, and its sale started at a specific time as well. We...