The Jordanian government’s new energy policy to diversify its range of energy sources and lift existing subsidies on fuel has had a knock-on effect on property prices, according to UAE-based estate agency Asteco.
The company said that the new policy caused cost increases in a number of areas including the price of raw materials, transport and construction. This has led to average price increases around 5-7% in 2012, while prices for apartments in prime areas like 4th Circle and Der Ghabar grew by 10-11%.
Rental rates for apartments remained largely unchanged for smaller one- and two-bed apartments, although prices for three-bed properties in popular areas like Um-Othainah, Al-Rabiah, Der Ghabar and 4th Circle wintnessed a 2% growth in rental rates.
4th Circle remained the most popular area, with a three-bedroom apartment costing JD16,500 ($23,295) per year.
“The demand was predominantly coming from local residents as well as some expatriates looking for medium-to-large sized apartments in the range of 250-350m2,” according to Asteco’s general manager, Hussein Safadi.
Meanwhile, demand for offices remained low, leading to rental rates declining by 3% during the final quarter of the year.
The market for sales of office properties remained “stagnant” during the year, which meant that prices did not change.
