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Sweden - so much more than IKEA
By Camilla Kaas Stock
If you prefer the great outdoors and beautiful wilderness to overcrowded beaches and karaoke, Sweden could be a real alternative. Add to this reasonable prices and its accessibility to the rest of Europe and you should come up with a winner.
The popularity of this family-friendly country, with its 100,000 lakes and beautiful coastline, is on the increase with more and more foreigners realising that in Sweden you can still get value for your money. Norwegian buyers who have found prices of holiday homes sky rocketing out of reach in their own country, have been turning up in droves the last few years and snapping up properties close to the Norwegian border and along the West Coast. Now the Danes and Germans are following, and what about the British buyers? Well according to the financial internet site "This Is Money" they are also starting to open their eyes to the possibilities at the top of Europe.
Property market
Last years economic meltdown saw property prices nose dive in many countries around the world , but the market in Sweden didn't fare as badly as some, with prices only dropping by an average of 2,9% according to Global Property Guide.
This followed a decade of soaring property values that saw prices rise as much as 217% in Greater Stockholmm. This incredible house boom was caused by low interest rates, rapid economic growth and lack of new supply.
In 2008 the credit crunch hit and the property market slowed down, not helped by Swedish interest rates which had followed the European Central Bank's key interest rates upward, from the record low rate of 1.5% in 2005 to 4.75% in September 2008.
The market hit a low in the third quarter of 2008, but with the central banks slashing interest rates it started easing the pain. In July 2009 interest rates reached 0.25%, its lowest level ever, and now the tide has turned.
"The housing market is now looking positive", says Andreas Mühlich from SkandiaMäklarna to Ipb-magazine. "We have seen prices for both holiday homes and apartments going up over the past year. Because demand outstrips supply, with not enough properties being built, we expect this trend to continue" he adds.
Value for money
So what can you get for your money in Sweden? If your dream is to own an apartment in beautiful cosmopolitan Stockholm, then unless you are loaded, dream on. Because of lack of supply, prices in the capital are sky high, and you could pay as much as 100,000SEK (Swedish kroner) per square meter. The waiting lists for an apartment are long and it isn't unheard of people waiting ten years or more to buy a place within the city walls.
But in other areas of the country the story is different. In the Linkoping area, in the south east, you can buy a small torp (little cabin) for as little as 150,000SEK (13,000£). If you prefer a property by the sea then prises vary widely from 3,090,000SEK (266,000£) in the Stockholm area, 1,630,000SEK (140,700£) in the Gothenburg area and down to 360,000SEK (31,000£) in Norrland for a property on 1500-2000 square meters of land, according to a survey done by SkandiaMäklarna. So whether you are looking for a country retreat or a seafront property, with a bit of searching you should find something to suit your budget.
Here are a few examples from SkandiaMäklarna of what you can get:
Near Linkoping: A 2 bedrom house near fishing lake for 150,000SEK (13,000£)
Near Mjolby: A 4 bedroom house from 1870 that needs some work for 350,000SEK (30,300£)
Near Stockholm: A beautiful 1 bedroom house from 1700 for 1,350,000SEK (117,000£)
Cabin in Storuman: A 4 bedroom cabin for 3,495,000SEK (302,900£)
Hoganas near Gothenburg: 5 bedroom house from 1909 for 3,500,000SEK (303,000£)
For more details on these or other properties look at www.skandiamaklarna.se
Any comments on this article, please post them on our forum page http://www.ipb-magazine.com/en/forum
Issue 5