Altia: Cyprus is a highly attractive destination for buyers and investors

Cyprus is a highly attractive investment destination for foreign buyers, catering to a broad spectrum of needs and wants. The benefits of investing on the island include its strategic location, favourable taxation system, robust regulatory structure, strong protection for investment and intellectual property (IP), and high quality of life.

George Xylofaitis, Altia Regional Sales Manager, Nicosia, Larnaca, Famagusta shares his view of the thriving Cyprus property market.

According to data from the land registry office, property sales in 2022 were at a record high. How do you find these results?

Unexpectedly, 2022 was a record year for property sales. This comes as a surprise given the many factors that negatively impacted the island, including the termination of the Cyprus Investment Programme, the Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, soaring inflation rates, increased loan interest rates, and rising construction costs. On the contrary, one would have expected that demand for properties would have reached a standstill.

The rising cost of construction, in particular, has had a significant domino effect, negatively impacting the supply of new properties on the market and increasing their price. This has consequently shifted demand towards second-hand properties, inevitably leading to a rise in respective prices.

Furthermore, the influx of Ukrainians and Russians in Cyprus due to the war, coupled with the headquartering incentives provided to companies and major investments (currently under construction or in the pipeline in all cities), has caused an imbalance between high demand and a shortage in supply. This disruptive factor in the market triggered the interest of both local and foreign investors, making Cyprus an attractive investment destination.

Do you believe this upward trend will continue in 2023 and onwards?

I believe this upward trend will inevitably continue until the end of the year, especially given all the major investments underway island-wide. It is imperative to observe the official results for the current year, which seem to point in this direction so far.

More specifically, a 24% year-on-year increase in property sales has been recorded, demonstrated by the contracts deposited at the Land Registry during the first five months of 2023, compared to the first five months of 2022. The same results also indicate that Cyprus is going through its third most foreign buyers’ dependent year, at 46%, compared to a close 49% in 2006 and 53% in 2007.

As Regional Sales Manager for Nicosia, Larnaca and Ammochostos, what are some of the main differences in consumer demands, and also available properties, between each of the three districts?

Based on experience, there are distinct differences between consumer demands in the three districts.

The Famagusta (Ammochostos) district, home to Cyprus’ most famous coastal resorts, enjoys a buoyant tourist market, equally attracting domestic and foreign buyers looking to permanently relocate to the island, interested in a holiday home, or wishing to buy-to-let with high rental yields.

Larnaca has always been an attractive investment destination for Lebanese and Israeli nationals who enjoy the perk of owning a secondary home away from home. The announcements regarding key infrastructure projects – such as the removal of oil tanks from the city’s coast, the development of the port and the marina, as well as the construction of the Larnaca-Dekelia road – has resulted in a frenzy of interested foreign and local buyers who recognize the future potential of the city and seek capital appreciation. They are interested in both permanent residence properties and buy-to-let properties, as well as commercial spaces for business relocation.

Cyprus’ capital, Nicosia, is the most mature and developed city on the island, known as the country’s business and commercial hub. It is home to the headquarters of many governmental and private organizations.

Nicosia is also known for its numerous educational institutes, creating a market for student accommodation and major commercial and industrial activity. The city has safeguarded a stable and credible property market over the years. The diverse pool of buyers has needs across all sectors, including commercial, residential, and industrial properties or land for development in all pre-mentioned categories. Nicosia buyers are primarily locals, with a large proportion of foreigners also investing in the stability that the capital’s property market generously offers.

How does Altia’s approach to the real estate market help it stand out from its competitors?

Altia is the fastest-growing property portfolio company spanning all types of properties. We are a one-stop shop for local and foreign property seekers, assisting them throughout their purchasing process, and successfully fostering long-standing relationships.

We also invest heavily in state-of-the-art technology to best present our properties on our platform and offer virtual tours, video material, drone photos, and surrounding area information.

Via our website, interested users can express their interest, arrange an on-site property viewing, download any property information, and submit an offer for their desired property.

Although Altia features a large variety of properties in its portfolio, we firmly believe that our people are our greatest asset and what makes us stand out. Our team comprises over 70 industry professionals with long-standing experience and knowledge of the property market. We are committed to investing heavily in our people’s skills and knowledge, adding value to the client experience, and boosting the relationships with our various business partners.

And we are always driven by an overarching goal to ensure a smooth selling process throughout the sales cycle, with a customer-centric approach, in a timely and professional manner.