Are customers holding off buying flats in anticipation of the Mieszkanie na start loan coming into force? What offer do developers have for those wishing to take advantage of the new government support?
Angelika Kliś, board member of Atal:
At the moment, we do not see such tactics on the part of buyers to hold back their purchase decision because of the planned new loan programme. Its preliminary assumptions announced are not final and many customers prefer not to take risks in such a situation. Waiting for the new programme to launch, especially when inflation is higher than lending rates, may not be worth it. Especially when, in a situation of limited housing supply, prices may rise.
Our customers have the option of booking a flat in the short term and, in the next step, concluding a reservation contract.
We currently have around 4,000 flats on offer and everyone has the opportunity to find the right flat for themselves, including families with many children, for whom we design four- and five-room flats in various developments. In terms of numbers, these flats are a minority due to the greatest popularity of twos and threes.
Cezary Grabowski, Sales and Marketing Director of Bouygues Immoblier Polska:
In the current situation on the housing market, customers do not wait too long before signing a contract, as they can see that the offer of flats from the primary market is shrinking with each passing day. People who decide to buy a flat very often finalise the transaction quickly. They know that the prolonged waiting period, may cause the number of available flats to decrease even further. What is more, in the recent months, the developers’ offer has been considerably reduced as a result of the increased demand caused by the launching of the 2% Safe Loan programme. Its beneficiaries were primarily interested in flats up to PLN 700,000, which is why there are currently the fewest 2- and 3-room flats in this price range with compact layouts. At the same time, these are still the flats most sought after by customers. The new Mieszkanie Plus programme favours above all families who are thinking of investing in a large flat. We have such units on offer and they are comfortable flats with balconies and roof terraces. Of course, their number is limited, so those deciding on such a unit should also not delay their decision to buy for long.
Tomasz Kaleta, Sales Department Director, Develia S.A.:
After the banks stopped accepting applications for the 2% Secure Loan, questions began to arise about the offer under the new support programme. However, until the details of this are known, we will not be able to discuss them with customers. We anticipate that buyers, having learnt from the experience of past months, will not wait with their purchase decision. A lot of people are worried about an even greater depletion of the offer and further price increases, which have risen by an average of 18 per cent in large Polish cities in 2023. In addition, it should be noted that the share of customers who purchased a flat from us with the Safe Loan 2 per cent was around 25 per cent, and the predominant form of financing was a cash purchase.
We have around 2,000 available flats in our current offer, and we plan to launch an additional 3,500 to 3,700 units throughout 2024. It is worth noting that in the new government support programme, the price criterion has been dropped, focusing only on the minimum income of borrowers. This should make it easier to purchase residential property, especially for those with lower incomes and for families with more than one person.
Andrzej Gutowski, vice-president and director of the Sales Department of Ronson Development:
We are currently seeing less interest from customers in the market. Some of the potential buyers are holding back their purchase decisions, waiting for a possible successor to the 2% Secure Loan programme. However, it is worth noting that the housing market is still functioning, offering opportunities also for those customers who cannot take advantage of preferential financing programmes. Here, we are also talking about customers using traditional mortgages and investors planning to buy a flat for rent.
We have built a sales plan for 2024 regardless of whether the government introduces another aid programme. We focus on stability and consistency of operations, regardless of possible political changes.
Zuzanna Należyta, commercial director at Eco Classic:
The flat to start programme, like all programmes providing loan subsidies, contributes significantly to the increased interest in purchasing a flat. As families with children stand to gain the most, this may have a positive impact on the structure of the units sold. The smallest flats with the lowest global amount have always been the most popular, and therefore the prices of these flats have risen the most. A family with 2 or 3 children will need a 3- or 4-bedroom flat, but due to less interest in large flats and their rather large supply, this may not affect the price increase as much as the BK2 programme.
Nevertheless, the new programme does not solve the basic problem – the low supply of housing. Any increase in demand without a commensurate increase in supply, in turn, inevitably leads to an increase in prices.
Mariola Żak, sales and marketing director at Aurec Home:
The increased interest in flats from developers is not waning. Every day, new potential customers interested in buying a flat from the primary market come to our sales office. It is true that the 2% Safe Loan scheme has drained a significant number of units from the market, but we are placing units from the next stage of construction of the Miasteczko Jutrzenki estate in the hands of customers. Interest is high, even though the new Mieszkanie na start programme is still in consultation. Customers are asking about units that meet the programme’s criteria and credit conditions, and some people are deciding to reserve units.
It is true that the new government subsidy will most benefit large families of 2+3, who, according to the assumptions, will be exempted from not owning property, which will enable them, for example, to sell their current flat and buy a larger one. Only this group will be able to enjoy the benefits of a 0 per cent loan and will receive the highest loan limits with the subsidy. We have a variety of units on offer, ranging from well-placed studios, compact doubles and small triples to spacious four-room units. For large families, we have special flats of more than 60 square metres, with spacious rooms, large balconies and a sunny kitchen with utility room.
Małgorzata Ostrowska, Director of the Marketing and Sales Division at J.W. Construction:
Clients are aware of the shrinking offer and know that it will take months or even years for developers to complete it. We are not observing a special slowdown in sales at the moment, especially in the case of projects where construction is already advanced, such as Stacja Centrum in Pruszków, and there are fewer and fewer flats available. Only in the newest projects, where construction and sales have just started and the choice of units is large, some of our customers are monitoring the situation and waiting for the final terms of preferential loans. However, we should remember that the new housing programme will probably only be in force for 1.5 years and the total pool of funds allocated is relatively small. Cash customers, as well as those who do not qualify for a preferential loan, know that it will not get any cheaper, and it will be hard for developers to catch up with supply. For the time being, the first half of the year promises to be equally active in terms of sales.
Dawid Wrona, Managing Director of Sales and Marketing at Archicom:
Immediately after the expiry of the 2% Secure Loan scheme, which was in force in its original form until the end of 2023, we noticed a periodic drop in interest in residential properties. We now know that in the second half of this year a new government concept, Housing for Start, will be launched, providing additional benefits for borrowers. Although the detailed assumptions of the programme are not yet known, we have already decided to meet the expectations of the market by offering an original development of the government’s concept.
Our programme Mieszkanie na start z extra bonus assumes the return of 100 per cent of the paid funds or the conversion of the flat if the buyer does not ultimately become a beneficiary of the programme, as well as a deferred payment – the own contribution is only 10 per cent of the property value. In addition, we offer one of two bonuses – the best price guarantee, i.e. a refund of the difference if the price of the flats is reduced in the future, or a 0 per cent loan subsidy regardless of the number of household members. Since it was announced, our proposal has attracted a lot of interest from customers, which has already translated into the first booking agreements. We have no doubt that the current popularity of the offer is due to the high availability of flats, which will decrease over time.
Source: dompress.pl
Photo: develia, Warszawa, aleje Praskie Wizualizacja
