The most popular projects managed by Citus in the capital city were PaJustis (115 apartments and 14 terraced houses – the latter were offered to buyers in July 2021), Link Ten (76 reservations) and Miško Ardai (61 reservations). The last 8 apartments and terraced houses were reserved in the already sold project Būk Čia, while 34 apartments were reserved in Visi savi in Visorių Street, which was launched in October – amounting to almost a third of the total number of apartments offered in the project.
In Kaunas, the most popular project was Klevų Namai, where 93 apartments were reserved. In contrast, 69 lofts were reserved in Radio City, a multifunctional project in the former radio factory Banga being revived by Citus in Žaliakalnis.
„It has been a really special and exciting year. The euphoria of the beginning of the year across the market and the very intensive work on planned projects within the company brought a lot of experience and managerial maturity. We have grown very significantly as a company and tried new strategies. One of them is that we were the first and probably the only one on the market to take the entire purchase process to the virtual space, given the threats and limitations of COVID-19. During the year, as many as 293 people booked apartments remotely, which is almost two-thirds of our customers,“ says Mantas Galdikas, director of Citus.
„Citus worked intensively on planned and new projects. Last year, the primary market supply in Vilnius was supplemented by housing in Phase III of PaJustis, the new Visi Savi project, and in Kaunas, the third phases of Klevų Namai and Radio City.
As many as five new projects were announced: housing to be built right next to the Gate of Dawn on Tyzenhauzų Street, two projects on Kareivių Street – a housing project at Kareivių 2E and a multifunctional project next to the Unideco centre at Kareivių Street 5. Last year, a plot of land was also acquired along Visorių Street, where construction of Visi Savi is expected to start soon.
„The market is at a high point of intensity and this is a very good time for us to grow, to get stronger, to accumulate experience, so we have been very active and have prepared numerous projects, some of which we haven't even announced yet. Today's most challenging thing is to work and expand in the jungle of an increasingly confusing bureaucracy. Even the uncertainty caused by the pandemic or inflation in construction is easier to deal with because they are calculable quantities. But changing requirements, longer deadlines and anticipated changes in the law, the implementation of which has not yet been fully coordinated, are holding back the whole market mechanism. We are communicating this to the market and to the authorities, and we hope that the messages will be heeded and that we will see efforts to cut red tape,“ hopes Galdikas.
He believes that it is not surprising that the number of projects being sold at the design stage is increasing: the rampant bureaucracy makes it necessary to design everything down to the smallest detail, especially at the early vision stage, and then to redesign it due to changes in circumstances or legislation, with the investment „lying in the ground“ – on the plot.
„It is sad to see how the design and approval timeframes are getting longer and longer every year before the actual construction stage. We can even ironically say that, as a wise and witty man, a living classic, once said, bureaucracies first need people to exist. And now, it seems to be living on its own without human intervention. Commissions argue with commissions while developers' projects wander through publicity and approval procedures without a clear trajectory,“ he laughs.
The biggest Citus news of the year was the group's acquisition of the Nemunas sanatorium complex in Druskininkai. A unique and sustainable project – apartments with a spa hotel package – is already planned for this year.
„We are preparing for this conversion project very intensively: the project team and partners are working hard. We are working on all fronts: we are finalizing the project concept and branding and holding discussions with future business partners. As a result, people will be able to have a second home here for recreation, remote working, wellness and so on, as the complex will offer apartments, additional services and spaces for work and everyday needs,“ the head of Citus elaborates on the vision of the future Nemunas by CITUS project.
Over the year, investments in projects managed by the company amounted to about EUR 45.5 million. In 2020 this amount was EUR 14.35 million, and in 2019 – EUR 11.2 million. In 2022, investments will increase even further: excluding acquisitions, they are expected to reach around EUR 54.4 million.
This year, construction is scheduled to start on Nemunas, another phase of Radio City, the third and final phase of Miško Ardai, and Visi Savi, both Kareivių Street projects and Tyzenhauzų Street.
„We are increasing our portfolio of projects and preparing for even more investments. We see the lack of supply, especially in the Vilnius market, and its pressure on housing prices. We want to actively communicate to the whole market and to the authorities that the affordability of housing will be preserved through the growth of supply, not by limiting demand,“ comments Mantas Galdikas, director of the real estate project management company Citus.