FAMAGUSTA (Ammochostos) in eastern Cyprus is the leader in terms of real estate growth according to our analysis of the latest figures on building permits issued by the Cyprus Statistical Service (Cystat).
Cut off from the town which now lies in the occupied area of Cyprus, the region of “Free Famagusta” (Ammochostos) has tended be the Cinderella of the property market.
However, in the first nine months of 2007, the value of building permits authorised for Famagusta rose in value terms by 64.3% over the same period of 2006, to reach CYP 101 million. The number of dwelling units for Famagusta rose in the same period by 62.4% to reach 1,811.
By contrast, more expensive Paphos in the west saw the value of building permits fall by 0.2% and the number of dwelling units by 6.3% to 4,127.
Limassol saw dwelling unit permits rise by 16.4% to 2,179, Larnaca by 8.3% to 2,493 and Nicosia, the capital, by 4.5% to 3,673.
In the same period, the total value of building permits authorised by municipal authorities and the district administration rose by 18% to reach CYP 1.2 billion, while the total number of dwelling units authorised rose by 8.9%.