Study: The number of unoccupied apartments in Prague is in the lower single digits percentage

Prague - The share of uninhabited apartments in the total housing stock in Prague is less than a few percent. This is indicated by a study from consulting firm KPMG that is available to ČTK. According to the latest available data, there are 46,000 uninhabited apartments in the capital, and the housing stock consists of approximately 600,000 apartments. As real estate expert Pavel Dolák from KPMG stated, the number of truly empty apartments is smaller.

"The problematic issues are both the definition of an uninhabited apartment itself and the determination of their number. There are various reasons why apartments are currently not used for living. Some are used for other purposes, such as offices, shops, practices, studios, or storage. Other apartments are being renovated or temporarily rented out, for example, through Airbnb," Dolák stated.

According to him, a special category consists of those apartments that their owners rent out long-term and do not tax the income from these rentals. "These apartments formally appear to be uninhabited. Other reasons include that some people hold onto apartments even after moving away from Prague. Once we consider these factors, the actual number of empty and unused apartments, compared to the total housing stock, is relatively low," Dolák added.

He mentioned that over the past 20 years, the rental market in Prague has matured, and the quality of services provided by real estate agencies in mediating rentals has also improved. "A number of companies capable of offering comprehensive management of investment apartments to foreign investors have established themselves in the Prague real estate market. From securing rentals, including verifying the tenant's creditworthiness, to management and technical services of the apartment, up to handling all administrative requirements," Dolák reported.

Recently, some politicians have proposed additional taxation on uninhabited apartments. The Pirates even considered checking electricity meters, where it would be determined whether someone actually lives in the apartment based on electricity consumption.

According to Dolák, it remains a question whether this additional taxation would be a sufficient incentive for their rental. "It is necessary to take into account that some of these uninhabited apartments are owned by wealthy domestic and foreign investors. Another question is whether this administrative measure will force apartment owners, who currently use them as offices, to rent these apartments for living and terminate long-term contracts. There is also a risk of evading this taxation and creating an administrative burden associated with collecting this tax," Dolák further stated.

He added that the issue of uninhabited apartments might raise questions about whether all legal conditions were met when offices or studios are operated in spaces certified as apartments.

An earlier analysis by the Prague city hall examined the occupancy of municipal apartments. As of the end of March this year, nearly 2000 of them were vacant, of which 700 are owned by the city hall. At that time, according to the analysis, there were 31,180 municipal apartments in Prague, which is about one-fifth of the total housing stock.