For the first time in the past ten years, more new apartments were sold in Riga than in Tallinn during the first half of the year, confirms Kristjan-Thor Vähi, CEO of Invego, which manages large-scale developments in both cities.
According to Colliers Latvia data cited by Invego’s CEO, 761 new apartment transactions were completed in Riga in the first half of the year, compared to 601 in Tallinn. “This is not surprising, since Riga has about 200,000 more residents, and the local real estate market has visibly picked up over the past year. At the same time, there is nothing dramatic here for Tallinn either, as Latvians are only now slowly catching up with the major backlog that has accumulated over the years,” Vähi affirms.
According to Vähi, a key factor is affordability. “While in Tallinn wages drive up real estate prices, in Riga it is the opposite – wages and therefore borrowing capacity have grown faster than prices. New apartment prices in Latvia remain up to 30 percent lower,” Vähi explains, adding that this year’s interest rate environment has also supported market activity.
In Invego’s own sales figures, Estonia still led with 49 transactions compared to Latvia’s 35 homes sold, but Vähi notes that the gap is closing quickly. “I am quite certain that in the second half of the year Invego will already sell more homes in Riga than in Tallinn. So far, Estonian projects had a time advantage, as we already have a fair number of new homes ready for immediate move-in, which has kept transaction numbers high,” Vähi explains, pointing out that in Estonia Invego can immediately offer completed terraced houses in Uus-Järveküla and apartments in the Luccaranna and Keila Pargikodud residential quarters. In Latvia, Invego is developing six residential quarters, with sales for two of them having started in the past two weeks.
Invego is a next-generation real estate developer operating in three countries, specializing in large-scale residential and business districts with comprehensive concepts that shape the urban spaces of the future. Invego Group’s companies in Estonia, Latvia, and Portugal currently manage nearly 30 different development projects. The company has developed 150,000 m², including 1,300 homes and more than 50,000 m² of commercial space, while an additional 450,000 m² of residential and commercial real estate is still in progress.
Among real estate developers active in Tallinn and its surroundings, Invego ranks second in terms of new homes sold over the past five years, with 900 homes. Its largest developments to date include the completed Vana-Peetri, Tiskreoja, and Tabasalu Kodu projects, as well as the ongoing Luccaranna, Uus-Järveküla, and Keila Pargikodud residential quarters.
In Riga, Invego is developing the Vitolu Parks and Mārupes Sirds residential quarters, and together with development partner Reterra also Parka Kvartals, Skanstes Rezidences, and Miera Rezidences, as well as terraced houses in the Vide Adaži development near Riga.
In southern Portugal, the company is developing Silves Hills, a 65-hectare project with 154 villas suitable for both year-round living and seasonal use.
More information:
Kristjan-Thor Vähi
E-mail:
www.invego.ee