Cypriot property prices starting to stabilise

Limassol, where apartment prices are on the up Photo: CyprusPictures

Cypriot property prices are starting to show signs of stabilising, says the island's Central Bank.

The Cyprus Central Bank's latest property price index shows that prices continue to fall in the country, but that the decline is slowing down.

Apartment values dipped 0.6 per cent in the second quarter of 2015, while house prices fell 0.4 per cent. Both are significantly lower than the 1.5 per cent and 0.8 per cent recorded in the first quarter of the year.

Nicosia led the drops in apartment values with a dip of 2 per cent, followed by Paphos (1.7 per cent) and Famagusta (0.7 per cent). Larnaca led the way in house price falls, with a drop of 1.3 per cent, followed by Paphos (1.2 per cent) and Limassol (0.7 per cent).

On an annual basis, house prices have fallen 4.6 per cent and apartment prices have fallen 6.2 per cent.

Nonetheless, some areas are starting to show signs of recovering, though, with apartment values up 1.1 per cent and 1.7 per cent in Limassol and Larnaca respectively, while home values rose 0.2 per cent in Famagusta.

The Central Bank forecasts that prices will eventually stabilise when they reach 2006 levels, when the market first began to overheat due to excessive demand for loans.

The bank's index currently reads 74.6 (Q2 2015), falling from a peak of 100.7 in 2009 and nearing the 73 reading recorded in 2006.