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Kuwait property sales off slightly in Sept

Kuwait, November 12, 2012

Residential sales in Kuwait during the month of September totaled KD100.9 million ($356.8 million), marking a year-on-year decrease of 1.7 per cent, a report said.

The small slowdown was due to a lower number of transactions, where September of last year saw a spike in sales as it recovered from seasonality (Ramadan) much earlier than this year, added the latest Kuwait Economic Brief released by the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK).

Ahmadi governorate saw about half of the transactions for the month, bringing in about 30 per cent of the total value of sales, as is typical in this sector. Overall, residential transactions in September were almost evenly split between purchases of homes and plots of land, whereas plots usually take a bigger share of transactions, the report said.

As for prices in the residential sector, both homes and plots recorded some m/m decreases, while averaging KD598 and 375 per sq m respectively for the last three months. These averages are understandably susceptible to fluctuations based on the sales composition for the month (location of sales, quality of estate being sold, etc), according to the report.

The investment sector saw KD75.2 million in sales during September, a small improvement compared to September of last year.

After three months of year-on-year drops, the investment sector seems to be recovering from some its summer slowdown, the brief said.

At almost KD99 million, average monthly sales for the first 9 months of the year remain higher compared to the same period in 2011. During September, a little more than half of the transactions were for single apartments, contrary to recent trends, where apartments usually take up only a third of total investment transactions.

In terms of pricing, the three-month average (July-September) for single apartments was KD599 per sq m, in line with recent trend but higher than last year’s average of KD549 per sq m, the report pointed out.

Of course, as non-price factors change over the months, this price increase could reflect some underlying trends beside mere hikes in cost.

The commercial sector recorded KD13.8 million in sales, a year-on-year drop of KD9.6 million. Sales in that sector continue to be volatile but remain on the low side, scoring four transactions in September.

The Savings and Credit Bank (SCB) approved 316 housing loans, totaling about KD17 million, an 8 per cent year-on-year increase in value.

A little more than half of the loan applications were for new construction, as is typical of the approved loans. Additionally, the SCB disbursed KD8.7 million in loans, a 1.8 per cent increase year-on-year, and further indication of consistent demand in the residential sector, the brief said. – TradeArabia News Service




Tags: Kuwait | real estate | Loans | commercial | residential |

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