Rental prices in the third quarter of this year fluctuated between a 4 percent decrease and a 17 percent increase compared to the spring. In addition to the continued unavailability of private housing, seasonal demand from students looking for housing in university towns drove up rental prices. Year-on-year, prices fell most frequently for 3+kk flats, while 1+kk and 3+1 flats recorded the most frequent increases. Quarter-on-quarter, rents rose most frequently for 2+kk flats, but also for 3+1 flats, which are preferred by student groups. This results from the data analysis of the real estate advertising company UlovDomov.cz.
According to the company, the rent in the most frequently demanded 2+kk flats in Prague is currently CZK 19,150 per month without deposits. The price has risen by three percent compared to the spring months, which amounts to about CZK 625. Year-on-year, renting such an apartment has become more expensive by about CZK 390, or two percent. In Brno, the rent of a 2-bedroom apartment went up by six percent compared to spring, i.e. by about CZK 910 to just under CZK 16,000. Year-on-year, rentals of 2+kk flats in Brno rose by five percent.
In Ostrava, it is currently possible to rent a 2+kk apartment for about CZK 13,140. Ostrava flats also became more expensive both in quarterly and year-on-year comparison. Compared to the previous quarter, it is possible to rent a 2+kk apartment in Ostrava for 17 percent more, which is significantly the largest price jump among all cities and layouts. Year-on-year, they have become one percent more expensive.
“As the start of the new semester approaches, the traditional demand for student housing is growing, which is pushing up rental prices. Another factor weighing on prices is the continued unaffordability of home ownership. Few families have enough money to buy a four-room apartment or even a house with four or five rooms,” said Michal Hrbatý, executive director of UlovDomov.cz.
He added that the company takes care of apartments with a layout of 1+1 or 1+kk, for which families were still able to get a loan. In the meantime, however, they live in a multi-room rental and own a smaller apartment as an investment.
Jiří Krejčí, the sales director of UlovDomov.cz, said earlier that students most often look for apartments near public transport hubs in the city centre and with divided rooms. According to Bezrealitky.cz, student flats in Prague were rented 11 percent more expensive in the second quarter than at the end of the holidays last year. In Brno, it was roughly seven percent more expensive, in Ostrava eight percent more and in Olomouc five percent more. However, deposit prices were lower, which was positively influenced by the stabilisation of the energy market.
Source: UlovDomov.cz and CTK
