By: Tamiracle Williams, GTR Communications Specialist
According to independent real estate consultancy, Knight Frank, average home prices grew in 55 countries during the first quarter of 2020. Many housing markets around the world entered the COVID-19 pandemic strong. With the stay-at-home restrictions have lifted and countries are reopening, how are those markets doing now?
Let’s start with the United States. The National Association of REALTORS® reports that 9 out of 10 REALTORS® “are at some point of recovery in their market.” The REALTOR® Resiliency Report findings also suggest that buyers are now looking for more space and would like to live in rural or suburban areas.
Real estate in the United Kingdom. is thriving. Many sellers are hoping to get their home on the market for a summer sale. Like the U.S., buyers are now in search for a home that offers more space (i.e. larger gardens and home offices) as well as something that is outside of the city.
Although the housing market in Australia was hot before the pandemic, certain sectors of the market were still recovering from the 2018 downturn when the market was put on a standstill due to the coronavirus. Currently, real estate professionals who primarily work with first-time homebuyers are recovering faster than those in other sectors such as luxury real estate market.
As countries such as the U.K. and U.S. implemented lockdowns, wealthy individuals flocked to the Bahamas for quarantine. With more companies switching to an optional work from home structure, the Bahamas is expected to see an increase in foreign investment.
In Egypt, the lockdown occurred during what is known as peak season for real estate (March – May). Now that the country has eased up on the lockdown restriction, commercial real estate professionals are seeing a high demand for medical facilities.
Real estate activity has returned to “normal” in France. The eight-week lockdown has helped renters realize they want to buy a home. Many buyers and sellers are also interested in relocating to a different area.
The unpredictability of COVID-19 as well as factors such as high unemployment and low immigration will be the biggest hurdles global real estate markets will face in the coming years, according to Reuters.
