The real estate market in Poland is one of the most stable, promising and rapidly developing in Europe. Natalia Zaitseva, a licensed agent of RE / MAX Poland, an international real estate agency, tells about the specifics of the market, the most profitable segments for investments, and the prospects for development.

Efestio.com – How do you assess the investment attractiveness of the real estate market in Poland today?

• The past year of 2017 was the year of record sales of the residential real estate in Poland. And today, according to the results of the first half of 2018, there is no decline in activity in the real estate market. Demand from foreigners is getting higher every year. According to statistics, among the foreign buyers are leading Ukrainians, then Germans, then the Austrians, porters, Belorussians, Russians, etc. go. Only in 2017 foreigners (individuals and legal entities) purchased about 650 thousand square meters of housing in Poland.

Consider the most popular variant of small investments, such as the acquisition of housing with the subsequent lease. If you conduct a comparative analysis of Poland with other EU countries, you can see that the highest rental rates in Europe in Luxembourg, Holland, France. In these countries, the cost of renting real estate is 20 euros per square meter. The lowest rates – in the Czech Republic, Romania, Lithuania, where the cost of renting an apartment starts from 6 euros per square meter. In Warsaw, the cost of one square meter of the apartment is about 12 euros, in other Polish cities – Poznan, Wroclaw, Krakow – about 9 euros, and in Lodz – 6,5 euros.

Otherwise, the situation looks like if we trace the ratio of the cost per square meter of the monthly rental rate to the price at which the property is put up for sale. Taking into account only this parameter, the lowest profit per square meter of purchased housing will be in Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, and Switzerland, where it is below 0.3%. Most profitable is the investment in the Netherlands, more than 0.9%. Poland among these countries looks investment-attractive, with a possible return of funds at the level of 0.6%.

Efestio.com – Which segment of the real estate market is the most profitable as an investment?

• For large and medium-sized investors, the most interesting is the hotel business. Large investors buy ready-made hotels, plots of land near the Baltic Sea for the construction of hotels and spa centers. For example, the rapidly developing area Mielno, 12 kilometers from the large city of Koszalin, is in great demand. Currently, there is a construction of an express road S6, which will connect Berlin, Szczecin, Kołobrzeg, Koszalin, Gdańsk. There will also be built an exclusive architectural concept “Dune City”, located on a land of 40 hectares between the lake Jamno and the Baltic Sea.

The project received the main award in the prestigious competition “MIPIM Architectural Review Future Project Awards” held in Cannes.

The investment involves the construction of a year-round new city serving the tourist movement at the same time as a beautiful marina.
Medium-sized investors prefer to purchase apartments of large areas in the center of cities, refurbishing them for hotels and hostels. Therefore, a well-chosen investment will always justify itself.

Efestio.com – Which real estate objects, and in which cities are most in demand in Poland? Why?

• The actual profitability of investments in Polish real estate is influenced by many factors, such as taxation, insurance, loan cost, demand. However, looking from the perspective of a European, investments in Poland are most attractive in Warsaw, Krakow, Poznan, and Gdansk. Investors preferences are divided into several categories. Among the Ukrainians are mostly labored migrants who came to Poland in search of a better life, and many here indeed find it. Migrants from Ukraine are almost evenly distributed throughout Poland since the bulk of them find work for themselves, which in Poland is quite a lot. The Germans acquire real estate mainly in Poznan, as the city is located close to the German border, and in Warsaw, as it is the capital, and the largest business is concentrated in it. Russians also buy real estate in Poland, but more often for investment purposes, from small investments-apartments for rent or with a subsequent sale to large hotels. The choice of the method of investment depends on the number of funds, the period for which the buyer wants to invest and pay back the funds. Many buy real estate for the purpose of subsequent leasing, and transfer to management companies that control and manage the entire technical and financial lease process, whether it is an ordinary apartment or a hotel by the sea.

Efestio.com –Why are real estate transactions in Poland safe for foreigners?

• Does Poland have laws that protect the rights of foreigners in this field? What are the risks for foreigners buying property in Poland? Poland is a very friendly and peace-loving country, with very hardworking citizens. In business, there are no divisions by nationalities so I can not talk about the security of transactions for individual categories. The rights of foreigners to real estate here are the same as those of local citizens. The main thing is to go through the procedure of registration of the transaction, and already on the acquired property, the foreigner has the same rights and obligations.

Efestio.com – How quickly do real estate transactions for foreigners take into account legal procedures?

• When purchasing real estate objects that do not require special permits (apartments), the procedure is fast, in cases of buying a house, a land plot, commercial real estate, a longer one. There is no general deadline, as they largely depend on how the purchase is financed and other factors. -What properties in Poland, in your opinion, are overvalued? Why? Real estate prices are largely regulated by demand, and as I noted, if there is a demand, the population’s purchasing power is growing, so the market is active. Very demanded apartments are a small area in the center of cities that buy young people as their first home. Accordingly, prices are always higher than market prices. Very often it happens that the apartment for sale does not even have time to visit the advertising portals, it is bought in the moment of development.

Efestio.com – How much is the cheapest and most expensive real estate in Poland? How have the prices for a residential real estate in Poland changed over the past year? What’s on them? Influenced? How much on average now is the square. m. housing in the primary and secondary markets?

• The real estate market of any country has a huge impact on the standard of living of the population and prospects for the development of the state. The record low unemployment in Poland, the rising wages of residents and low-interest rates on mortgages, have affected the residents’ fear of assuming long-term obligations, such as a mortgage loan. The real estate market also receives funds from bank deposits and deposits of citizens. The labor migration of foreigners from the nearest neighboring countries to Poland is increasing. All this has provoked an increase in activity in the Polish property market in the last few years. The most expensive housing is in Warsaw. Then follows Krakow, the third place is shared between Wroclaw and Poznan and Gdansk. The cheapest accommodation is located in the city of Lodz. Although, according to many experts, the proximity of this city to Warsaw, the intensive development of industry, can affect the growth of property prices in Lodz in the next few years

Statistics of real estate prices in Poland according to the portal Bankier.pl as of July 2018 (orange – primary market blue – secondary)

Efestio.com – How does the procedure for registration of property in the property? What are the difficulties of buying for Russian citizens?

• In accordance with Polish law, the acquisition of commercial real estate and real estate related to land (including residential buildings) by foreign citizens requires a special permit. Apartments are purchased on general grounds and do not require permits. The procedure of registration depends on the legal form of the real estate, the financial conditions of its acquisition, and in each case it is individual. Notarial registration of the transaction is required.

Efestio.com – What is an agent for, what pitfalls can there be in dealing with real estate?

• As in any country, Poland has its own peculiarities when registering the transfer of ownership of real estate. Very often, when preliminary checking the property and preparing it for sale, we come across a number of nuances that must be addressed (for example, the former owner forgot to register a document several years ago, very often we find errors in documents that were once made by employees of various administrations, and much more) A competent drafting by the real estate agent of a preliminary contract, the main contract including all the smallest details of the transaction, taking into account the country’s legislation, guarantees a high level of the transaction and its security. While some details that are not visible to an ordinary Polish buyer, not to mention foreigners, can lead to many negative consequences that can be avoided in cooperation with a professional real estate agent.

Efestio.com – Thanks for the really important information!

• With pleasure, I will answer all your questions!

Tel. + 48 602 280 084