By Mohamed Alaa El-Din
Many Egyptians have recently been resorting to living in residential compounds, according to Emad Al-Masoudi, CEO of real estate search engine AqarMap.
According to a survey conducted by AqarMap, 58% of Egyptians prefer compounds due to the availability of security, while 22% prefer compounds for the services provided.
Al-Masoudi said 62% of Egyptians living in compounds because of services consider green spaces as one of these services, which are inexpensive for investors. On the other hand, he explained that approximately 47% of Egyptians look for fully-furnished apartments, while 90% of available housing units are semi-furnished or unfurnished. According to the survey, 53% of Egyptians look for semi-furnished units.
Al-Masoudi said that the average price of residential apartments in New Cairo have increased by 19.3% over the current year. This price rise has brought the price per square metre to range between EGP 2,400 and EGP 12,200. As for villas, the area witnessed a 17.9% increase during 2015, with the price per square metre now ranging between EGP 5,800 and EGP 15,000.
The Sheikh Zayed area saw the largest growth in terms of prices, according to AqarMap’s survey. Prices in the district increased by 24.4% over the current year compared to last year, whereby the price per metre ranges between EGP 1,900 and EGP 6,100 for apartments, whilst standing at an average of EGP 3,600 per metre for villas.
Al-Masoudi added that AqarMap will launch a mobile application that will outline the customer’s expectations regarding the value of real estate they want to buy, depending on analysis of data. The application will base its calculations on the evolution of real estate prices in the Egyptian market and the location of the property.
