Almost 3,500 fewer promise of sale agreements were registered in 2022 when compared to 2021, though the total remains higher than what was registered in 2020.
Data published by the National Statistics Office showing the number of final deeds of sale and the promise of sale agreements signed in the final quarter of 2022 shows that a total of 12,177 promise of sale agreements were registered across last year.
This is 3,462 agreements less than the 15,639 promise of sale agreements registered in 2021, according to the NSO’s data. It is however still higher than the 11,259 promises of sale registered in 2020.
The number of final deeds of sale registered during 2022 however was almost identical to the number of final deeds of sale registered during the previous year.
The NSO’s data shows that a total of 14,305 final deeds of sale were registered during 2022 – only 63 less than the 14,368 final deeds of sale registered during 2021. The total therefore remains significantly higher than the 11,057 registered in 2020.
The figures presented in the NSO’s news release are based on residential property sale registrations with the tax authority. The number of contracts/agreements signed and those registered during a particular period could differ because of a time lapse in between signing of contract and the actual registration of the same.
December 2022 and Q4 2022 data
Final deeds of sale
In December 2022, the number of final deeds of sale relating to residential property amounted to 1,003, a 28.8 per cent decrease when compared to those registered a year earlier.
The value of these deeds totalled €225.1 million, 28.5 per cent lower than the corresponding value recorded in December 2021.
In the month under review, 916, or 91.3 per cent, of the total final deeds of sale involved individual buyers (households), with companies accounting for virtually all the rest. The value of the deeds involving individual buyers (households) amounted to €186.3 million, equivalent to 82.8 per cent of the total value.
In the fourth quarter of 2022, 3,738 final deeds of sale were registered, an annual decrease of 4.1 per cent. The value of the deeds registered during this period went up by 0.1 per cent over the same quarter of the previous year and amounted to €859.3 million.
With regard to the region the property is situated in, the highest numbers of final deeds of sale were recorded in the two regions of Gozo, and Birkirkara, Il-Gżira, L-Imsida, Ta’ Xbiex and San Ġwann, at 600 and 467, respectively.
The lowest numbers of deeds were noted in the region of Vittoriosa, Cospicua, Senglea and Kalkara, and the region of Ħ’Attard, Ħal Balzan, L-Iklin and Ħal Lija. In these regions, 82 and 101 deeds were recorded, respectively.
The highest annual increase was registered in the Vittoriosa, Cospicua, Senglea and Kalkara region, at 43.9 per cent. The second highest increase was noted in the region of Birkirkara, Il-Gżira, L-Imsida, Ta’ Xbiex and San Ġwann, an 8.4 per cent rise when compared to the previous year.
In contrast, the largest annual decreases were observed in the two regions of Ħ’Attard, Ħal Balzan, L-Iklin and Ħal Lija, and Il-Mosta and In-Naxxar, with declines of 21.1 per cent and 20.1 per cent, respectively.
Promise of sale agreements
In December 2022, 1,002 promise of sale agreements relating to residential property were registered, equivalent to a 55.9 per cent decrease over the previous year. Individual potential buyers (households) accounted for 901, or 89.9 per cent of the total agreements, while the rest mainly involved companies.
In the fourth quarter of 2022, the number of promise of sale agreements reached 3,357, representing an annual decrease of 27.2 per cent. The largest numbers of promise of sale agreements corresponded to residential properties situated in the two regions of Birkirkara, Il-Gżira, L-Imsida, Ta’ Xbiex and San Ġwann, and Gozo, totalling 454 and 416, respectively.
The lowest numbers were noted in the regions of Vittoriosa, Cospicua, Senglea and Kalkara, and Ħ’Attard, Ħal Balzan, L-Iklin and Ħal Lija. The first-mentioned region accounted for 83 agreements and the second for 107 agreements. The region of Vittoriosa, Cospicua, Senglea and Kalkara saw the only annual increase in promise of sale agreements, with a rise of 3.8 per cent.
On the other hand, the highest annual decreases were observed in the two regions of Ħ’Attard, Ħal Balzan, L-Iklin and Ħal Lija, and Gozo, which recorded drops of 35.5 per cent and 35.3 per cent, respectively.