The crisis in the property market looks set to continue for another two to three years, according to 56.3 per cent of real estate experts who took part in a survey by the Statistics Department of the Athens University of Economics and Business.
Almost three-quarters of respondents said that house prices will decline in the next six months, while almost all said there is an oversupply of professional properties. Falling demand, lower incomes, tighter bank lending and fears of job losses are some other factors that, according to report, will hinder possible property market recovery within the next six months.
The report didn’t not mention how many agents were surveyed. Eight out of 10 interviewees said demand for commercial properties will be much lower, with 70 per cent saying prices will fall as a result. According to current figures house price declined five per cent in the first quarter while the number of property transactions involving lending from financial institutions fell almost 48 per cent from the same quarter in 2010, the Bank of Greece said in May.
The university’s general real estate confidence index dropped to 35.8 points for the second half this year from 36.3 points in the first six months, the University said. Austerity measures agreed to by the government last year in return for 110 billion euros ($159.8 billion) of emergency loans have deepened Greece’s recession as unemployment has risen and consumers have bought less. The Greek Parliament last week approved further budget cuts that were key to receiving further financial aid.