The Hungarian rental market became more active in March, with average rents rising by 1.6% month-on-month both nationwide and in Budapest, according to the latest KSH-ingatlan.com rent index data.
In a statement sent to MTI on Tuesday, the real estate listing portal said that on an annual basis, rents increased by 7.3% nationwide and by 6.4% in Budapest.
László Balogh, chief economic expert at ingatlan.com, was quoted as saying that March brought faster price growth based on the latest data. In February, annual price increases were 5.4% both nationally and in Budapest. He added that the stronger rise in rents is partly explained by seasonal spring activity, while increasing average wages are also pushing rental prices higher.
According to detailed March data, rents also increased month-on-month in most regions, though at varying rates. The strongest monthly growth was recorded in Western Transdanubia, where rents rose by 2.8%, while the smallest increase was in the Southern Great Plain, at 0.8%.
On an annual basis, the most significant price growth was observed in Southern Transdanubia, where rents increased by 11.8% compared to the same period last year. In other regions, annual increases were 7.4% in the Southern Great Plain, 7.1% in Western Transdanubia, and 7% in Northern Hungary.
In Budapest, the slowest annual growth was seen in the Buda Hills districts (I, II, XII), where rents rose by 4.1% overall. By contrast, the fastest increases were recorded in Districts III, XI, and XXII on the Buda side, and Districts X, XIII, XIV, XIX, and XX on the Pest side, with annual growth rates of 8.8% and 6.7% respectively.
Balogh also noted that despite March’s price increases, median rents in Budapest stood at around 255,000 forints in mid-April. He added that the gap in rental prices is narrowing: it is now very difficult to find a good apartment for under 200,000 forints, while properties priced above 300,000 forints are becoming increasingly hard to rent out.
The report also highlighted that in major city rental markets, both purchasing power and the “Home Start” program are limiting further rent increases.
(MTI)
