According to the Statistical Center of Iran, the average price of land or residential buildings in the first half of the current fiscal year (March 21-November 21) was 11.7 million rials ($389) per square meter, marking a 0.7% decline compared to the previous six-month period but a 0.5% surge year on year, ISNA reported.
The total number of lands sold, including those with old buildings, however, dropped 21% in comparison to the same period last year, signaling the persistence of the bearish mood in the real estate market. The decline was even bigger y-on-y at 36%.
Among the provinces, Tehran, at 31.7 million rials ($1,051), and Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad at about 580,000 rials ($19.2), had the highest and lowest average sale prices respectively.
Yazd Province, in central Iran, had the least number of old property deals during the period and Tehran the highest, according to the SCI data.
Moreover, the number of traded residential buildings dropped by 15.1%, compared to the previous six-month period and 24.4%, compared to the same period last year.
A comparison of the average price in Iran shows that Tehran had the highest average sale price for residential units at 34.8 million rials ($1,154), and Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad the lowest, at 1.82 million rials ($60.3) per square meter.
The number of rented homes in square meters was up 21.4% compared to the previous period and down by 9% at an annualized rate.
Tehran, at 178 million rials ($5,900), and Charmahal-Bakhtiari, at 20.39 million rials ($675), respectively, had the highest and lowest average monthly rents for homes in the country.
Iran’s property market and construction industry have been hit hard over the years for a variety of reasons, namely the economic sanctions, slow growth, declining purchasing power, high prices, paltry mortgage and the policy of banks not to lend to the key sector.
Builders say despite the present state of affairs, there is still ample demand for low-priced housing as the average Iranian wage-earner cannot afford expensive housing.
Lifting of the sanctions last month has injected some hope into the market, but experts insist that the things will turn around only after two to three years and only when the economy gets back on its feet.
