In the first quarter of 2019, notary agreements regarding sales of real estate units and any other kind of exchange of properties and appurtenances in return for payment were 190,904. Seasonally adjusted data show that they increased by 2.0% compared with the previous quarter (+2.0% in the residential sector and +2.5% in the economic properties sector).
With reference to the residential sector, the growth concerned all the geographical areas in comparison with the previous quarter (Centre +4.4%, Islands +1.9%, South +1.7%, North-West +1.3%, North-East +1.2%). In the economic sector, the growth was recorded in the Centre (+10.4%) and in the North-East (+6.3%), it was zero in the Islands (0.0%), while decreases were recorded in the South (-3.2%) and in the North-West (-0.9%).
Almost the total of notary agreements (94.3%) affected transfers of residential properties (179,993), followed by transfers of properties for business purposes (10,221; 5.4%) and estates for special uses and multi-owned properties (690; 0.4%).
Compared with the first quarter 2018, real estate unit exchange agreements rose overall by 8.0%, the highest trend growth experimented since first quarter of 2017. The expansion concerned both the residential (+8.4%) and the economic sector (+5.0%).
The trend growth, observed in the housing sector, affected the entire national territory – Centre +12.0%, North-East +10.2%, North-West +9.4%, Islands +3.8% and South +2.4% – and all types of municipalities – metropolitan cities +8.7% and small municipalities +8.2%. The economic sector registered positive trend changes in the Centre (+13.6%), North-East (+7.8%) and North-West (+3.4%), in metropolitan cities (+8.2%) as well as small municipalities (+2.7%); the changes were negative in the Islands (-2.0%) and South (-1.7%).
Mortgage-secured loans (97,412) declined by 0.8%, compared with the previous quarter, and rose by 3.6% on an annual basis.
Compared with the previous quarter, mortgage-secured loans decreased in the South (-3.4%) and, more lightly, in North-West (-0.9%), North-East (-0.7%) and Islands (-0.3%); instead the changes were positive in the Centre (+0.6%). Compared with the first quarter 2018, they increased in Centre (+8,5%), North-East (+5.1%) and North-West (+2.6%) and declined in Islands (-2.6%) and South (-0.5%). As regards types of municipality, the increase concerned both metropolitan cities and small municipalities in equal measure (+3.6%).