Total real estate transactions (local and foreign transactions) stood at 56,637 in the first 11 months of the year, with a 10.56% yearly decline from 63,322 by last November. Furthermore, those total transactions were worth $7.11B, dropping by an annual 11.69%, over the same period. Hence, average value of real estate transactions went down by 1.27% y-o-y from $127,103 by November 2014 to $125,490 by November of this year.
Skewed by the Arab Spring in 2010 and the Syrian conflict in 2011, demand for real estate in Lebanon had weakened significantly over the past 4 years. In hindsight, the six-month moving average of real estate transaction numbers by November 2015 tumbled by 27.85% from November 2010. As seen in the chart below, the six month moving average portrays a seasonal effect as the main descents are experienced in H1 of each year, ensued by a recovery in the second half of the year. However, the worsening seasonal crests and toughs confirms the declining trend in real estate from year to year.
In contrast, figures revealed that foreigners’ share of total real estate transactions went up annually from 1.60% to 2.22% by November of this year.
Number of Monthly Real Estate Transactions
Source: Cadastre