Rental prices for a flat next to the Charles Bridge in Prague haven’t been this cheap since the 1990’s. It’s one of the odd symptoms of the coronavirus pandemic, which by driving the crowds of tourists away for the foreseeable future has broken up the market for short-term flat rentals organized by digital platforms such as Airbnb and Booking.com. With no income from the units, which are usually financed by mortgage loans, the owners are throwing them on the market at absurdly low rates in the hope of attracting a tenant for a few months. But with most university students out of town, no tourists and the employees of stores, restaurants and hotels having left, few people are even requesting viewings. A study by Deloitte, the daily Lidové noviny writes that the number of advertisements for flats in Malá Strana and in the Old Town has risen by more than 200 percent, while Nové Město adverts are up by 142 percent. “In the center of Prague, what we’re witnessing is that for a few months it will probably be possible to rent a furnished apartment in the center for less than an unfurnished one in an edge of town housing estate.”
