Property sales up in
Beirut and major cities

Numbers are down in small cities and towns

The total number of recorded built-up property (residential units) sales transactions went up just two percent to reach 70,721 in 2014, compared to the previous year. The Beirut figures rose by three percent to 3,983 sales transactions.

Areas close to Beirut had negative growth, contrary to remote areas, which registered positive figures. The number of recorded transactions dropped by 13 percent to 8,036 in Baabda, by four percent to 5,884 in Metn and by four percent to 3,915 in Jounieh. Tripoli’s transactions rose by 11 percent to 4,603, Saida’s by 17 percent to 2,742 and Nabatieh’s by six percent to 1,374.

The total number of recorded real estate sales transactions, which include built-up property and vacant land, increased up by two percent to 70,793 in 2014. The value of these transactions rose by six percent to $9.2 billion.

Guy Manoukian, Partner in Zardman, a developer, said: “Our sales were stable last year and we shifted our focus from starting new projects to delivering what we have in the pipeline.”

The highest number of property deals (sales transactions of built and vacant land) is in in Baabda with 15,500, same as the previous year. The value of a transaction however edged up slightly to $122,400 compared to $121,000.

Baabda is followed by Metn and Kesrouan (8,000 transactions each; lands and apartments sales transactions). The number of transactions in Metn remained the same but property sales in Kesrouan improved by four percent. The number of transactions was lowest in Beirut. Joelle Mansour, Sales Manager at Icar Wakim, a brokerage firm that covers Metn, Kesrouan, and Beirut, said: “The highest activity was in Metn in areas such as Monte Verde, Beit Mery and Ain Saade.” Buyers, even those who were living in Beirut are moving away from the capital towards Metn. The value of a sales transaction in Metn dropped to $194,000 from $213,000.

She said that activity has begun to increase in Kesrouan as well: “Sahel Alma, Ghazir, and Ajaltoun are in demand.” The average sale transaction was priced $123,000 compared to $124,000.

The total value of sales transactions in Beirut is the highest with $2.4 billion, for both land and residential units. “Prices in areas such as Ashrafieh and Hamra start at $3,500-$4,000/m2, and are not very negotiable, unlike other areas,” said Mansour. The average sales transaction in Beirut rose six percent to $509,000. Zardman has a lot of faith in Beirut. The company is planning to launch a new project in Ashrafieh this year. “The capital will always be in demand because of the scarcity of land,” said Manoukian.

The average value of a sales transaction in the North was recorded at $55,800 compared to $53,600 in 2013. The average value of a transaction in Zahle is $75,600, in Nabatieh $47,000 and in the South $80,700.

The number of construction permits remained stable too, reaching 14,880 in 2014. The total area covered by these permits is 11 million square meters, up six percent from 2013. This signifies that developers are making use of the maximum allowed exploitation. Mount Lebanon continues to have the lion’s share of overall permits. The total area of permits issued in Beirut that was issued permits last year, grew by 50 percent to 937,000 m2. Property areas in Bekaa dropped by 30 percent compared to the South.

“We are very optimistic about 2015, because we have been seeing good sales and we would be seeing even more if the overall situation of the country were to improve,” said Manoukian.