Rent prices drop: real estate dealer

In 2009 the rent of apartments and commercial offices will be the same as later in 2008. According to the experts of the Real Estate Bourse “Lara,” the rent prices will drop because of the financial crisis. A manager of Lara, Nicolai Ostafeiciuc, has stated for Info-Prim Neo that the Moldovan rent market shows no signs of change at the beginning of 2009, in comparison with the situation of the real estate sales market, where the prices drop. “If the prices of apartments grew about 10-12 times from 2001 to 2008, then the rent prices grew 3-4 times. That is, this market developed 2.5 times slower. This trend remains the same this year. If the selling prices on the real estate market drop, the prices on the rent market will also drop but slowly,” Nicolai Ostafeiciuc specified. In 2008 the rent prices, in euros, grew 20%, while they stayed steady in Moldovan lei. This was possible on the background of a falling euro compared to the Moldovan currency. The most demanded apartments on the rent market are the low-cost apartments – 150-200 euro for one or two-room apartments, with absolute snugness. The rent of residential rooms represents about 70-80 % of the rent market in Moldova. According to the chief of the non-residential real estate department of Lara, Ghenadie Gurdis, nor the rent prices for commercial rooms will grow, the demand being relatively small. “If till the fall of 2008 the prices for renting commercial rooms rose 12-15%, then no changes registered following this period. Companies usually rent commercial rooms at 15-17 euros per square meter monthly or they even rent autonomous rooms, that is buildings with separate exits, at 12-15 euros per square meter,” Ghenadie Gurdis added.