According to LUN, in November in Uzhhorod the cost of renting apartments and private houses rose sharply: median prices for one-bedroom apartments increased from 22.5 thousand UAH in summer to 35.3 thousand UAH, while two-bedroom apartments rose from 36 thousand UAH to 46 thousand UAH.
Rental payments and the burden on wages
The median share of salary spent on rent in Uzhhorod did not exceed 75% in August, but by November it had reached 114%.
Prices for apartments rose over several months: while a one-bedroom flat was rented on average for 22.5 thousand UAH in summer, the figure is now 35.3 thousand UAH; for two-bedroom flats the median grew to 46 thousand UAH.
Private house rentals - pace of price rises
Renting private houses in Uzhhorod over the past six months has become 65.8% more expensive - to 62.2-103 thousand UAH.
On an annual basis the dynamic approaches 143%, which the data authors call a record in Ukraine.
Price examples and expert opinions
“A few months ago a good one-bedroom flat with renovation in Uzhhorod could be rented for $700, but now the same is being asked for $1 200-1 300. There are cases when owners deliberately evict long-term tenants and put properties back on the market at higher prices,” says the head of the real estate agency “KyivDimServis”, Andriy Romanov.
Examples from listings: a one-bedroom apartment in a new residential complex (RC) near the embankment is rented for $1 000; a two-bedroom in a brick building from 2015 with individual gas heating for $870; a one-bedroom 50.5 m² in a complex with designer finishes for $1 100. A two-bedroom in an old “tsarist” building near Bozdosky Park is for $2 000, while a similar one in the “Budapest” RC is for $1 800. A 120 m², four-room house is listed at $1 500, a similar one in the village of Mynai at $2 500.
Romanov also added that Zakarpattia attracts internally displaced people and residents from Kyiv due to the absence of a curfew and more favourable electricity supply; some people buy property, others rent, and potential tenants are ready to pay $1 000-1 500 a month.
“Uzhhorod is a small city. It so happened that even before the war there were far fewer new construction projects here than in any other regional centre in the country. The focus was mainly on private building in the suburbs. With the start of the war demand for rentals, as well as for housing sales in Uzhhorod, began to rise. Developers, catching this trend, began launching more projects, but most of them are not yet ready or have not entered the rental market. Therefore, the supply of rental apartments lags significantly behind demand,” says the director of the Asotsiatsii zakhidnoukrainskykh zabudovnykiv, Yurii Martyniuk.
Realtors predict a further rise in Uzhhorod rental prices of at least 10-15% by winter, while other regional centres are expected to see slower growth.
