More real estate deals in Austria

Almost 94,000 properties were sold in Austria last year, it was announced today (Weds).Land registry records show that 93,807 houses and apartments were sold in 2010, 12.7 per cent more than in 2009. The overall purchase price of the estates ranged around 17.25 billion Euros, up by 5.8 per cent year on year, according to real estate company Re/Max.The most transactions occurred in the province of Lower Austria with 20,426, while capital city Vienna topped comparative rankings regarding the overall price of purchased houses and flats with 4.93 billion Euros.The average purchase price of apartments ranged around 130,000 Euros in 2010, almost six per cent more than in 2009. Seventeen per cent more flats were sold in Austria last year compared to the previous year. Apartments in Vienna were most expensive with an average price of 138,300 Euros.The highest number of house purchases (2,684) occurred in Lower Austria, the large north-eastern province which encircles Vienna. The average purchase price for houses in Lower Austria is estimated to be 137,500 Euros.Meanwhile, researcher Andrea Baidinger revealed that a declining number of couples decide to buy real estate nowadays.Baidinger said last month that just 61 per cent of unmarried and married couples aged 30 and younger were opting for the purchase of a house or a flat, down from approximately 75 per cent 10 years ago.