ZAGREB, 19 April 2022 - Croatian MP Milorad Pupovac and the director of the Bosnian Serb entity's secretariat for the displaced and migration, Davor Čordaš, on Tuesday signed an agreement on the construction of houses for Serb families whose homes were destroyed in the 2020 earthquake in Croatia's Banovina region.

The agreement is worth HRK 6 million and envisages the construction of ten prefab houses, to be made by the Steco factory in Bijeljina, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The agreement was signed in the Bosnian Serb entity's capital of Banja Luka.

Prior to that, Pupovac held talks with the entity's prime minister, Radovan Višković, telling the press he expected the houses to be delivered by the end of the summer.

11 April 2022 - Croatian house prices rose by 9.1% in the fourth quarter of 2021 compared with the same period in 2020, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (DZS).

House prices had continued to grow on an annual level since the second quarter of 2017. The highest growth was recorded in the second quarter of 2019 when they went up by 10.4% year on year.

In the last quarter of 2021, prices of newbuilds increased by 15% compared with the same period in 2020, while prices of existing residential properties went up by 8.4%. On average, house prices increased by 8.8% in Zagreb, by 11.7% along the Adriatic coast and by 4.1% elsewhere in the country.

Compared with the third quarter of 2021, house prices rose by 2.5%, with prices of newbuilds increasing by 3.9% and prices of existing residential properties by 2.3%. Prices of residential properties went up by 2.4% in Zagreb, by 3.1% along the coast and by 1.4% elsewhere.

ZAGREB, 8 Feb 2022 - The head of the post-earthquake reconstruction task force, Deputy Prime Minister Tomo Medved, on Tuesday informed the ruling coalition partners about the status of works in the quake-hit Banovina region.

After the meeting, the vice president of the ruling HDZ party, Branko Bačić, said the construction of the first 30 prefab replacement houses had begun.

This week the construction of another 30 brick houses will also begin, he said, adding that tenders and public procurement will now be continuous, giving reconstruction in Banovina a big momentum.

Regarding reconstruction that does not involve seismic retrofitting, Bačić said that Medved informed them that 1,332 houses had been rebuilt and that it was now the turn for another 1,000.

The goal is to give a roof over the head of every Banovina inhabitant by the end of the year so that they don't welcome next winter in inappropriate conditions, he said.

Also, Bačić dismissed accusations from the opposition Bridge party that the government was stalling the verification of signatures it collected for a referendum against COVID certificates.

"It's in the interest of us in the ruling majority, too, to have the number of signatures checked as soon as possible," he said.

The proposal of the parliamentary committee on the constitution on the two referendum petitions will be debated at a plenary on Thursday and only when parliament votes on it can the government begin verifying the signatures, he added.

MPs will also debate the possibility that representatives of the two referendum petitions monitor the signature counting and verification.

ZAGREB, 1 Oct 2021 - Total household loans in Croatia in August accelerated their growth on the year from 4.3% to 4.6%, with housing loans continuing to increase from 10.6% to 10.8%, according to data provided by the Croatian National Bank (HNB) on Friday.

Total lending by monetary institutions to domestic sectors (apart from the central government) in August fell by HRK 500 million or 0.2% compared to July and at the end of August they amounted to HRK 241.1 billion, the HNB reported.

The annual growth rate of total placements remained at 4.1%, the same as in July.

Total loans, which account for the majority of total placements, fell by HRK 400 million or 0.2% on the month, with loans to the business sector contracting by HRK 700 million or 0.8% and loans to other financial institutions falling by HRK 100 million or 0.6%.

On the other hand, household loans increased by HRK 300 million or 0.2%.

Year-on-year, housing loan growth accelerated from 10.6% to 10.8%, and the growth of cash loans increased from 0.6% to 0.8%, leading to accelerated growth in household loans from 4.3% to 4.6%.

Total household deposits up by HRK 37 billion on the year

Total deposits amounted to HRK 359 billion, HRK 8.6 billion or 2.5% up from July, whereas on the year they increased by HRK 37 billion or 11.5%.

Household deposits amounted to HRK 238.3 billion, up HRK 3.3 billion or 1.1% on the month and by HRK 19 billion or 8.6% on the year, the HNB reported.

(€1 = HRK 7.491380)

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ZAGREB, 3 Sept 2021 - The Central State Office for Reconstruction and Housing will on Friday publish a tender for the construction of family houses, which is the first step in the structural reconstruction of houses in Sisak-Moslavina County, hit by a strong earthquake on 29 December 2020, Večernji List daily said on Friday.

Interested contractors will be able to apply over the next 30 days, with bids that fit one of the two envisaged models of construction - prefabricated or classically built houses, and the contracting procedure and construction work is expected to start on 1 November, Gordan Hanžek, State Secretary at the Central State Office for Reconstruction and Housing told the daily.

He explained that houses would be rebuilt mostly on land plots owned by people whose properties were destroyed or damaged beyond repair in the earthquake.

"There are more than 1,000 such properties in the entire earthquake-hit area," Hanžek said, adding that houses for two-member households would have an area of 55 square metres, those for three or four-member households would measure 70 square metres and those for households with five or more members 85 square metres, in line with the Reconstruction Act.

He noted that the duration of construction work would depend on the type of house chosen.

This will help provide accommodation, in a foreseeable time, for people currently staying in housing containers, Hanžek said, noting that currently 4,776 people were staying in 14 container settlements but that there were also 2,195 housing containers located by earthquake victims' homes, Večernji List said.

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ZAGREB, 30 Aug 2021 - Central State Reconstruction and Housing Office state secretary Gordan Hanžek said, after a meeting of the task force dealing with the aftermath of last year's quakes on Monday, that they had agreed on drafting project documentation for 288 houses.

"It is for houses issued a yellow or red label, which are designated for reconstruction. Project documentation for the construction of standard replacement facilities has been contracted. Those are 55-, 70- and 85-square-metre buildings, for two-, three- or four-member and multi-member households. Contracts have been signed and you will be informed about their content," Hanžek said.

He added that two solutions were planned - for rural and urban buildings. According to Hanžek, the project will first be presented to the owners, who will choose between two available types of buildings. Either type can be prefabricated or traditionally constructed, depending on the owners' wishes. Of course, the construction period is shorter for prefabricated buildings, while the deadline will be slightly longer for traditional masonry construction.

"We expect the first contracts for the construction of replacement houses by the end of the year," Hanžek said.

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ZAGREB, 27 Aug 2021 - War Veterans' Affairs Minister Tomo Medved, who heads the task force dealing with the aftermath of last year's earthquakes in Sisak-Moslavina County, said on Friday that priority in the reconstruction process would be given to houses whose owners were now accommodated in prefab containers.

So far, roughly 400 family houses have been rebuilt, next week over 1,500 contracts will be signed with property owners for the reconstruction of their family houses. By 15 September, we will have about 6,000 active contracts on reconstruction, Medved said in Sisak.

He said that priority would be given to the reconstruction of properties whose owners had been relocated to container settlements so that they could move in their rebuilt homes before the winter.

Medved said that the authorities also planned the reconstruction of other damaged structures and construction of a number of apartment buildings in the quake-hit area.

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ZAGREB, 5 March, 2021 - Over the past 12 months interest in buying a house in Zagreb dropped by 10% while at the same time interest in house purchase in Gorski Kotar, Lika and Istria grew significantly, shows an analysis by the Njuškalo online classified site.

Even though there have been no major changes in asking prices for real estate in Zagreb over the past 12 months, trends related to demand point to changes in customers' interest, which is probably due to a series of earthquakes that hit central Croatia in 2020.

Whereas last year clients increasingly searched for houses in Zagreb, rather than flats, over the past 12 months the interest in buying a house in Zagreb dropped by 10%.

In the entire country the interest in house and flat purchases grew less than one percent on the year but some regions have become much more attractive.

In the central mountainous Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, the interest in buying a house rose by 26.75% in the last 12 months, while in Istria it went up by 25%. Ads for properties in Lika-Senj County, too, saw an increase in views of 22.4%.

The average asking price for houses in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County was €1,595 per square metre, in Istria County it was €1,799 and in Lika-Senj County €1,160.

Potential buyers also increasingly searched for houses in Zadar County, as well as in the region of Međimurje, with interest in buying real estate there going up by 11%.

Interest in flats in Zagreb up 5.6%

From February 2020 to February 2021 interest in buying a flat in Zagreb grew by 5.6%, with the average asking price exceeding €2,150 in February 2021.

Among the cities where asking prices have continued growing are Osijek, Zadar and Pula, with Rijeka seeing the highest increase, of 6.4%, for the second consecutive month. Even though Split was previously in this group, it has been stagnating now in terms of the average asking price, Njuškalo says.

Rent in Zagreb down 9%, demand down 6%

Over the past 12 months, the rent on flats in Zagreb dropped by 9% and demand in the first two months of this year dropped 6% compared to the same period of 2020.

The average rent in Zagreb was €539, with most flats for rent having an area of 40-70 square metres, and the only flats to see an increase in the cost of rent on the year were those with an area of 20 square metres. The cost of rent for such flats went up by 3.2% to an average €231 per month.

The cost of rent dropped the most in the downtown area of Zagreb, by 11%, however, the average cost of rent still exceeds €700 a month, the online site says.

ZAGREB, Aug 19, 2020 - The Fund for Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency is preparing to receive applications for energy renovation of family homes under an HRK 203 million scheme and individual grants are capped at a maximum of 204,000 kuna.

The ministry of physical planning and construction said in a report published on its website on Wednesday that after the government in mid-May amended the programme for the energy renovation of family homes, the fund published a public call for applications for funding under the HRK 203 million scheme.

 Applications can be submitted as of 1 September.

"The aim of the programme is to encourage the implementation of energy efficiency measures and the use of renewable energy sources in family houses. That will lead to a reduction of energy required for heating and cooling in residential buildings, and will consequently increase savings in energy and finances and improve the quality of living," the ministry says.

Family homes account for two-thirds of the country's housing stock

The ministry underlines that family homes account for 65% of the country's housing stock, and their energy consumption accounts for 40% of total energy consumption at the national level.

The majority of family homes were built before 1987 and when assessed for their energy efficiency, they were rated in category E for energy performance certificates (EPCs). These constructions consume 70% of energy for heating, cooling, and hot water. According to some estimates, their energy consumption can be reduced by 60%.

The scheme will provide funds for the insulation of external walls, ceilings, and floors, replacement of windows and doors, etc.

Under the scheme, eligible applicants can count on grants to cover 60% of the costs of energy renovation, with grants capped at 204,000 kunas (€27,200).

Croatians at risk of energy poverty will also be eligible to receive assistance to cover 100% of the approved project costs, and 32 million kunas has been set aside for this purpose under the scheme. Social welfare workers and energy assessors will assist citizens concerned to prepare their applications for full coverage of their energy renovation costs.

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As Marija Crnjak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 24th of May, 2019, Croatia's private accommodation renters who advertise their premises on platforms such as Booking.com and Airbnb should make sure they are properly registered on the eVisitor system in order to avoid potentially serious consequences. A visit from an inspector could occur at any time.

Along with the beginning of the summer tourist season, the strengthening of the supervision of the properties rented out privately to tourists from landlords and owners, as well as other types of hospitality facilities, is on the cards. State inspectors will be out in full force this season, and they will, among carrying out numerous other tasks, "comb" through potential unregistered listings and punish Croatia's many illegal renters.

This ''action'' will be assisted by the central eVisitor information system that applies to all categorised facilities, and uncategorised apartments and houses will also be searched out on booking and reservation platforms such as Booking.com and Airbnb, as has been confirmed by the state inspectorate.

There are numerous types of categorisation in place for private accommodation, and each and every facility that rents its space to tourists must be correctly registered on Croatia's eVisitor system in order for those guests to be registered with the police and/or tourist office upon their arrival (although this is something many choose not to adhere to, and which, in all honesty, isn't enforced well), and more importantly, for the host to be able to pay the correct taxes. In addition, a tax number must be highlighted for such tourist services carried out within the European Union.

A total of 136 jobs have been systemised ready for these types of inspection during the tourist season, and, together with the employees of the Customs Administration of the Croatian Ministry of Finance, a total of 97 jobs for tourist inspectors to carry out the work have now been filled.

At the moment, 52 inspectors are working to cover Croatia's coast, where the majority of illegal renting takes place, through offices in Rijeka and Split, as well as sixteen other associated offices. In addition to that, during the very height of the tourist season, inspectors from Croatia's continental counties will also be there to help out their coastal colleages. They all have access to the eVisitor system, which will help them to detect illegal renters.

The mechanism for locating Croatia's illegal renters is very simple, if the accommodation advertised on online platforms such as those listed above is not registered on eVisitor, this acts as a sign to inspectors that they can take the appropriate action. It has since been found out from private renters that nobody is asking for categorisation certification on those platforms anymore.

Booking.com and Expedia were asking for categorisation certification until the powerful Airbnb entered the Croatian market just a few years ago. Anamarija Cicarelli, head of the Split family accommodation advice centre, says most rental platforms have lost their legitimacy because they simply go off trusting the advertiser without any actual evidence.

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Click here for the original article by Marija Crnjak for Poslovni Dnevnik