Italian Residential Snapshot H1 2022
The Italian Residential Market Performance in 2022 first semester
- Francesca Fantuzzi
- Carlo Cocuzzo
- Claudia Solarino
Key takeaways:
The Italian Economy is now facing global headwinds
The Italian economy decelerated in Q1 2022 amid higher geopolitical uncertainty stemming from the Ukraine conflict. Annualised headline Inflation in June 2022 peaked at 8.5% (up from 7.3% in May), the highest reading since 1986 and it’s set to stay well above the 2% target for the rest of the year.
The Residential sector however confirmed its resilience in 2022
The residential sector confirms its positive trend in H1 2022 in Italy. Large cities account for 15% of total residential transactions (NNT). On the investment side the Living sector is clearly emerging, while on the private side changes in demand trends are providing further stimulus to the housing market.
Looking ahead the balance of risks is skewed to the downside
Looking ahead, risks to GDP growth are skewed to the downside because of rising inflation and tightening financial conditions, especially as consumers spend more of their budget on non-discretionary items (heating, energy and food) and mortgages become more expensive.
The volume of real estate transactions (NNT) has been on the rise in H1 2021, confirming its positive trend since the outbreak of the pandemic, while stronger domestic demand and increased market liquidity conditions helped to improve both the Average Time to Sell and Average Discounts. Large cities account for almost 15% of total residential transactions (NNT).
The rising trend for new residential continues, although raw materials shortage has curbed its growth. The residential market performed above its past trend due to fiscal policy easing, a low interest rates environment and convenient mortgages: in 2022 the Investment appetite for the residential sector continued to accelerate across markets and real estate investors have now reached a transitional phase where investment in the living sector has become as important as traditional commercial sectors. This is mainly due to emerging trends such as multi-family living, co-living and serviced apartments and the growing interest around the conversion of existing real estate assets to the residential sector.
