Bigbank: There Was a Turnover, but No Breakthrough in the Apartment Market in April

The significant market recovery that occurred in March was followed by substantial stagnation in April, and home loan contracts were concluded in the same amount as in the previous month, with the average loan amount also remaining at the same level of 111,000 euros, according to Bigbank's home loan portfolio analysis.

“Currently, momentum continues, but there has been no major breakthrough in market activation. At the same time, the market has clearly revived and the number of transactions is growing step by step,” commented Jonna Pechter, CEO of Bigbank Estonia, on April results. According to her, many home purchase enthusiasts have agreed with the bank on their borrowing capacity, but the home search is still ongoing and no real transaction has yet been completed.

According to Jonna Pechter, in April, every seventh home loan issued by Bigbank in Estonia had a unique repayment schedule that allows the repayment of the loan principal to begin only after 5-15 years. “The special schedule is particularly popular among 30-35-year-olds, that is, at an age when a professional career has just gained momentum and people are also significantly more confident about their future financial capacity,” said the CEO of Bigbank Estonia.

According to Bigbank's CEO, the market behaved similarly in April in all three Baltic countries. “The March surge was followed by a quieter April, but compared to winter, there is significantly more movement in all three countries,” commented Pechter.

Bigbank is an Estonian commercial bank specialized in loans with international reach, whose balance sheet exceeded one billion euros in 2021.