PwC Malta’s Real Estate survey confirms preference for home ownership and potential pressures in the rental market

PwC Malta’s 5th edition of the Real Estate Survey, which was conducted towards the end of 2023, reveals that almost half of the respondents (Q4 2023: 49%; Q1 2023: 42%) indicate that they have plans to buy property.Demand to rent property has dropped when compared to the last edition of the Survey, from 31% to 11%. Such decline is particularly evident in the younger demographic, suggesting that this cohort in the population is more interested in purchasing a permanent residency rather than renting property. Government incentives and regulatory developments are expected to further drive property ownership amongst young people. This is in line with recent data released by the National Statistics Office in 2023, which highlights that promise of sale agreements experienced a year-on-year increase of 9%.The latest PwC survey indicates a decrease in the share of respondents who intend to purchase property as sole owners (Q4 2023: 51%; Q1 2023: 60%). Against this backdrop, published statistics indicate that young Maltese people are moving out of their parents’ home later when compared to other EU countries. According to the most recent local statistics, in 2022, the average age of people moving out of their family home was 30.1 years, compared to a European average age of 26.4 years.In the context of an increasing awareness on sustainability, the survey registered a positive shift in the percentage of prospective buyers (Q4 2023: 70%; Q1 2023: 59%) who give weight to sustainability factors in their property purchase decision. Furthermore, whilst in Q1 of 2023 54% of respondents stated that they would not pay more for a property which has sustainability features, the latest results now indicate that 59% are willing to pay a premium for a property that carries such features. The full results of the survey, which targeted a representative sample of residents and has a confidence level of 95% and a margin of error of 5%, can be accessed here.About PwCAt PwC, our purpose is to build trust in society and solve important problems. We’re a network of firms in 151 countries with over 360,000 people who are committed to delivering quality in assurance, advisory and tax services. Find out more and tell us what matters to you by visiting us at www.pwc.com/mt. © 2024 PricewaterhouseCoopers. All rights reserved. ‘PwC’ refers to the Malta member firm, and may sometimes refer to the PwC network. Each member firm is a separate legal entity. Please see www.pwc.com/structure for further details.