In the first half of 2023, over 93% of powiats around large cities in Poland showed an increase in interest in apartments for sale following the easing of conditions for granting mortgage loans, according to Otodom data.
Compared to 2022, the strongest increase in interest in apartments outside the main cities of the agglomeration in the first half of the year was visible in the districts around Łódź (+40%) and Kraków (+30%).
In the Łódzkie Voivodeship, potential buyers looked for homes in the Pabianice powiat almost half as often as a year ago, and in the vicinity of Kraków, the Wieliczka powiat and towns adjacent to Krakow saw the greatest increase in popularity.
Also, the inhabitants of the Silesian conurbation were much more willing than a year ago to pay attention to apartments outside the capital of the voivodship.
The growing interest in suburban locations is mainly due to economic factors, according to Karolina Klimaszewska, Otodom Senior Analyst.
“In the last quarter, the average offer price per sqm of apartments in the largest Polish cities amounted to PLN 12,500, while in urban centres of 100,000-500,000 inhabitants, it was almost 30% lower. In medium-sized cities, with populations of 50,000-100,000, the price was nearly half as low (around PLN 6,500 per sqm on average),” says Klimaszewska.
Otodom data further shows that last year's influx of refugees from Ukraine made apartments for rent in suburban locations more popular. Currently, however, the offer on the rental market is gradually rebuilding, and thus the interest in renting outside the main centres is declining.
Nonetheless, Poland is also seeing higher interest from potential home buyers in large cities. For instance, in Warsaw and Katowice, there was a 15% year-on-year increase in searches for this type of property.
