Report: Prices of Soviet-era apartments in Riga down 0.2 pct in December

Prices of Soviet-era standard design apartments in Riga's residential suburbs declined 0.2 percent month-on-month to 637 euros (about 739 U.S. dollars) per square meter in December 2014, Arco Real Estate said in its latest report.

However, in annual terms, the apartment prices rose 3.9 percent in December.

In comparison with November, the supply of apartments in Riga's residential suburbs dropped significantly in December, authors of the report said.

"The number of apartments for sale in Riga was down 12.1 percent, decreasing by 8.8 percent in the largest residential suburbs and by 19.7 percent in the central part of Riga," Arco Real Estate said.

"A significant drop in supply is an annual phenomenon, which can be explained by year-end festivities and holidays, during which activity in the property market usually declines," Arco Real Estate said.

The prices of standard design apartments in Riga dropped for the third month a row in December.

"Although such a situation was last seen three years ago, for the time being, the price reduction can be described as small, as during the last quarter the overall price level decreased by just 0.5 percent, or four euros per square meter," the company said in the report.

In most suburbs of Riga, apartment prices rose by an average of two to four percent in 2014.

In December 2014, the average price of a square meter rose by 0.1 percent for single-room apartments, but dropped by 0.5 percent for double-room apartments, by 0.7 percent for three-room apartments, and by 0.3 percent for four-room apartments. Endit