FOLLOWING eight consecutive months of increasing sales, the number of properties sold in Cyprus during November fell compared to the same period last year according to the latest official statistics from Department of Lands and Surveys.
During November, a total of 370 contracts to purchase immovable property were deposited at Land Registry offices across Cyprus; a 6% fall compared to the number deposited in November 2013 (394).
Of those 370 contracts, 93 (27%) were deposited in favour of overseas buyers, while the remaining 277 (73%) were deposited in favour of domestic buyers.
Year to date sales
During the first eleven months of 2014 total property sales reached 4,073; an increase of 685 (20%) on the 3,388 sales recorded during the same period last year.
Domestic sales
Sales to the domestic market declined 7% compared to November 2013.
Sales in Famagusta, Paphos and Limassol fell by 54%, 31% and 12% respectively, while sales in Larnaca increased by 49% and sales in Nicosia rose 16%.
Year to date
During the first eleven months of 2014 domestic sales reached 2,977; an increase of 493 (20%) on the 2,977 sales achieved during the same period last year.
Overseas sales
Sales to the overseas market declined 3% compared to November 2013.
Although sales in Larnaca, Famagusta and Nicosia increased by 170%, 133% and 40% respectively, these increases were more than offset by the fall in sales in Limassol (-46%) and Paphos (-35%).
Year to date
During the first eleven months of 2014 property sales to the overseas market reached 1,096; an increase of 192 (21%) on the 904 sales achieved during the same period last year.
My 3 bedroom apt; has been up for sale for 4 years, nothing wrong with it, just does not sell.
Statistics can tell many different stories depending on who is reading the book. For example, Paphos is traditionally the biggest market for sales to UK overseas buyers and probably the most useful barometer of UK sentiment. While sales did fall there in November, 30 days is too short a time period to attach any significance because the monthly swings are too great. If we take Sept -Nov inclusive, then sales rose from 102 in 2013 to 113 in 2014; that’s an increase of 10.8%.
Looking at the overall sales to overseas buyers, the corresponding figures show an increase from 244 to 317; that’s a 30% increase.
The last point is that while the percentages may look impressive, the base is very low and so are the absolute numbers. However, if they keep going up, that won’t be the case for too much longer.
@Steve on 2014/12/06 at 1:32 pm – Statistics are wonderful things. If you look at the year-to-date figures for the overseas market in Paphos (407) they have fallen 1.7% compared to last year (414).
Reports suggest that many properties in Paphos have been sold to the Chinese market – unfortunately the Department of Lands and Surveys doesn’t provide a breakdown of sales by nationality.
During the first 11 months of 2008, a total of 2,189 properties in Paphos were sold to the overseas market and I would suggest that the majority of purchasers were British.
I guess it goes to prove that you can fool a lot of the people for most of the time. I wonder if overseas buyers just do not care whether or not they have title deeds or if they believe they will receive them in swift order or in fact if the lure of buying cheap and flipping the contract for a profit far outweighs the possibility of non receipt.
One would have thought that all the warnings and data available, warning of the dangers, it would put people off. Unless of course all the foreign buyers have managed to secure title at point of sale – now that would be progress, and novel I imagine.