Slovakian capital tipped for investment

Investors who are looking for a strong rental market in Slovakia should buy in the country’s capital the managing director of Slovakia Investment Property (SIP) has said.

Bratislava is in possession of the "best rental market" in the country, according to Petra Gajdosikova, managing director of SIP.

"Bratislava is the best market if you want to rent your property. There are very few other locations in Slovakia where there is a viable rental market because the local people are the occupiers," said Ms Gajdosikova.

"For there to be a rental market you need a lot of expatriate companies and students and so on, so Bratislava has always had the best rental market compared to some other towns, which have pretty much nothing in terms of rental potential.

On 7 May 2008, the European Commission (EC) approved Slovakia’s application to adopt the euro on 1 January 2009.

Domestic and foreign analysts largely agree the move is expected to impact positively on economic development, businesses and the property market.

This follows in the success of other European entrants such as Bulgaria.

However, entry prices may not be as low as other regions in eastern Europe.

"The only problem is that a lot of investors, when they are investing or looking to invest in central or Eastern Europe, expect the property prices to be very low," said Ms Gajdosikova.

"These days investors are surprised that the prices for a good central property that can be rented out are higher than what they expected."

Bratislava sits on the banks of the Danube river and has a population of just fewer than 500,000.

Bordering with Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two countries.

Chris O'Toole