A new study by Deloitte claims that Prague is 22,000 flats short of the total it needs. Prague would need around to see the construction of around 6,000 apartments a year to satisfy demand. Deloitte’s study revealed that there are about 900 projects with a total of 40,000 apartments that are currently waiting for construction permits. “It’s the frightening number of frozen flats at various stages of approval that’s causing tithe extreme price increase in recent years. In years to come, the shortage of apartments will worsen and prices will rise along with it,“ stated the President of the Chamber of Commerce, Vladimír Dlouhý. He said that the average length of time needed to obtain a construction permit is 4.5 years, the study found, however the process often takes up to seven years.
The Chamber of Commerce believes that the main issue slowing down construction is obscure and difficult legislation. Investors and developers have continually been pointing out failures by local authorities to play their part and to process requests on time. Dlouhý believes that if requests were processed in the required time period there would be a huge increase in the number of apartments constructed.
