Storia.ro Survey – Buyers Could Postpone Purchase Decisions if New Real Estate Taxes and Fees Are Adopted

Following the release of a draft ordinance announcing changes to real estate taxes and fees that could affect the real estate brokerage process, Storia.ro, the real estate platform launched by OLX, conducted a survey to gather opinions from those impacted by the proposed measures. Respondents included individuals interested in buying or selling a property, as well as real estate agents and developers. According to the results, all respondent categories believe that adopting changes to real estate taxes and fees could lead to postponing home purchase decisions.

Buyers and sellers’ views on the new real estate intermediation measures

The majority of respondents interested in buying or selling a property stated that changes to real estate taxes and fees would influence their real estate decisions (77%), while 13% indicated that the ordinance’s laws wouldn’t affect them if adopted. Simultaneously, 10% of respondents mentioned being uncertain about how much the new laws would impact their future decisions.

Read more about

Raionul de Pește Floreasca relaunches the Chef Table concept

read more

When asked how future purchase decisions would be affected, 44% of those currently interested in buying a property stated they would postpone the purchase, 25% would abandon the purchase, and 21% said they would rush to buy. However, 17% of buyers said they were currently unsure about how and to what extent the new tax changes would influence their real estate decisions.

Among respondents planning to sell a property, 40% would increase the selling price, while only 4% would lower the price to sell faster if the proposed measure to increase tax on individual real estate transactions were approved. Meanwhile, 27% of respondents mentioned they would rush to sell, and 22% would postpone the process. 15% of sellers said it was not clear how and to what extent their future real estate decisions would be influenced.

Views of agents and developers on the new real estate intermediation measures

If the law were to be enacted in the proposed form of the draft ordinance, most agents and developers believe that those interested in a purchase would delay buying a property (52%), while 30% think they would opt for smaller properties. 17% state they cannot yet make a pronouncement, while 9% expect future homeowners to increase their budget for the purchase.

When asked how property owners planning to sell would react, agents and developers believe that they would ask for a higher selling price (chosen by 74% of respondents), 22% think they might postpone the selling process, and 13% believe owners will rush to sell.

Among the potential effects of the draft ordinance on the real estate industry, if approved in its current form, agents and developers are convinced that increased housing prices will lead to decreased buying power, and the tax hikes will result in a stagnation or even a decrease in the number of completed transactions.

Likewise, among the effects considered very likely in the real estate market if approved, there are:

• Increased demand for rentals (chosen by 52% of respondents)
• Decreased transactions may reduce developers’ interest in new real estate projects (42%)
• Increased purchase price for new properties (39%)

The questionnaire was published online on Storia.ro and OLX Real Estate in August 2023, and responses were collected from 869 respondents: 700 interested in buying or selling a property and 169 real estate agents and developers. The analysis was conducted by Storia.ro, the real estate platform launched by OLX, as part of the “Smart Path Home” initiative, aiming to contribute to the transparency of information necessary for all buyers, renters, owners, agents, and developers, to make informed real estate decisions.