22.02.2023
Demand for luxury properties above €1.5 million remains strong despite the termination of the Cyprus investment program in November 2020, which resulted in a decrease in activity in luxury residential real estate.
According to the PwC report on the real estate and development market in Cyprus, a partial recovery in this sector was recorded in 2022, when 220 luxury real estate transactions were concluded.
A 36% year-on-year increase in transaction volume compared to 2021 indicates that the luxury real estate sector remains active.
Every tenth deal is for luxury real estate
In particular, 220 properties sold in excess of €1.5m were sold in 2022, compared to 162 sales worth €440m in 2021, with a 34% year-on-year increase in value and a 48% increase compared to 2020 year.
Overall, the luxury residential sector, valued above €1.5 million, accounted for 11% of the total value of transactions in the Cyprus real estate market in 2022.
Most transactions are registered in Limassol
The province of Limassol continues to dominate the market for high quality residential deals, accounting for 76% of the total, followed by Paphos with a 17% share.
The two coastal cities account for 93% of the luxury real estate market, with Nicosia (3%), vacant Famagusta (3%) and Larnaca (1%) holding very small shares.
While real estate transactions worth more than €1.5 million continue to grow, the most resilient segment of the real estate market remains residential buildings valued between €100,000 and €300,000, accounting for a quarter of the market.
According to PwC analysis, in 2022, the number of housing transactions in the amount of 100,000 to 300,000 euros reached 7,600, which means an annual increase of 19% (6,400 in 2021). In fact, the sector has grown by 41% compared to 2019 (5400), the year before the pandemic.
This is mainly due to an increase in the level of demand for first homes and an increase in investment activity in rental housing (especially apartments) coupled with an increase in demand from foreign buyers moving to Cyprus.
In terms of transaction value, sales in this market segment in 2022 will amount to 1.3 billion euros, which is 18% more than in 2021 (1.1 billion euros) and 66% more than in 2020 ( 790 million euros).
30% of transactions with residential real estate worth from 100,000 to 300,000 euros are in Nicosia, 25% – in Limassol, 21% – in Larnaca, 19% – in Paphos and 5% – in free Famagusta.
