● THE SWEDISH PROPERTY MARKET NEWSEC PROPERTY OUTLOOK • SPRING 2021
THE SWEDISH PROPERTY MARKET
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AN INCREDIBLE END TO 2020 – WITH MORE TO COME IN 2021
2020 was an unusual year for Sweden, much like for the rest of the world. The covid-19 virus had substantial impacts on the Swedish economy, which ended up contracting by 2.9 per cent – one of the best performances among the major economies in Europe. Though this was a less severe contraction than initially expected, there were still clear impacts on e.g. unemployment, which rose by around two percentage units throughout the year. The relatively light restrictions instituted in Sweden contributed to the economy outperforming much of the rest of Europe, though the other Nordic countries, which introduced more severe restrictions, performed similarly to Sweden. Inflation remains below the goal of 2.0 per cent, but the Swedish Riksbank is likely to leave the key interest rate at 0 per cent for the foreseeable future de-
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spite this. In 2021, the Swedish economy is expected to rebound and grow by around 3.5 per cent. This will entail a strong recovery, though pre-covid levels of GDP are not expected to be reached until 2022. Naturally, the strength of the recovery will continue to indirectly depend on epidemiological considerations in Sweden and abroad, as well as the success of the vaccination process and return to relative normality that follows. Despite a shaky economy, the Swedish real estate market performed incredibly well in 2020. The transaction volume in 2020 ended up at SEK 189 billion – the third strongest year on record by some margin. Q4, with a volume of SEK 82 billion, ended up being the strongest quarter of all-time in Sweden, breaking the previous record
of SEK 74 billion set in Q4 2016. As such, it is clear that market sentiment in Sweden is currently very strong. A number of major transactions have already been completed in 2021, and many more are currently being initiated and likely to be completed in Q2 and later throughout the year. As a result, 2021 is set to be yet another very strong year for the Swedish transaction market – with Newsec expecting a new record transaction volume of SEK 225 billion.
Contact: Adam Tyrcha, PhD adam.tyrcha@newsec.se Alexandra Lövgren alexandra.lovgren@newsec.se
