OREANDA-NEWS. February 22, 2008. MIEL-Novostroyki made nearly 900 agreements for sale of apartments to individuals in December 2007, exceeding the average monthly figure (400 agreements) by more than two times.

The largest number of sales represents new developments in Moscow, mainly in the Volzhsky micro-region.

About 20% of sales agreements used mortgage credits, down slightly from 30% average annual figure for 2007.

Highest demand was for two-room apartments, while demand for one-room apartments was slightly lower.

An inflation-matching price rise of 1-2% in December proved no obstacle to the rapid increase in sales.

Specialists of MIEL-Novostroyki believe that the strong market in December does not merely reflect a traditional upturn ahead of New Year.

Julia Geraskina, Director of the Na Leninskom branch of MIEL-Novostroyki says that the December strength is mainly explained by pent-up demand. Potential buyers were keen to go ahead with their plans to acquire an apartment before the end of the year, so that many of them decided to close deals in December.

The second reason for the sharp upturn in buyer activity is the trend towards a lower share of economy-class housing in total Moscow housing supply. This trend is particularly noticeable on the market for panel-built housing, which explains why apartments in panel-built apartment blocks represent the largest share of sales.

The third reason is that potential buyers receive various kinds of premiums, bonuses and dividends at the end of the year. These additional sources of income are what enabled many people to go ahead with property purchases at the end of the year.