The Maltese housing market

Housing is a very difficult issue almost everywhere. There are so many decision points even when choosing an apartment for a mid term that most people would rather not deal with this problem.

Just like me.

However, I'm in a relatively easy situation because CONNECTICLUB provided me with accommodation close to the office, although simplicity comes at a cost.

When I asked them for recommendations, they emphasized that it's worth living near the workplace, as public bus transportation in Malta is "problematic" in many ways. In practice, this means that while buses do have schedules, they often forget them, and on the island, we encounter traffic jams almost always, even at night.

So how should we start and what should we expect when looking for a rental? And what are the mentioned decision points?

Let's start with the latter:

• What is the available budget?
• Do we want to live alone, possibly with our partner? Or are we willing to share with strangers, even sharing the apartment or room?
• Do we have a preference for where on the island we want to be located?
• Do we know where we will be working physically?
• How far can it be from the sea?
• What leisure activities do we have?
• In what season would we move and for how long?
• How much do we like the hustle and bustle, or do we have a need for silence?

Of course, I can't incorporate every possible answer to every question into my recommendation, but I'll try with a few:

The most frequented areas: Sliema, St. Julian’s, and Valetta.

These are the most expensive, and based on my walk yesterday, I can say it's no surprise, it was very nice to be here; if I could, I would live in the coastal part of Sliema.

More affordable cities in the south: Marsaskala, Birżebbuġa, and Żejtun. The first two are coastal (harbor) cities with good beaches and direct bus connections to Valetta.

In the central part of the island, further away are Qormi and Birkirkara, as well as Mosta, where I live. Their advantage is that the eastern, central, southern, and western parts of the island are similarly accessible. Another advantage is that they are a bit further from the hustle and touristy areas, but the historic city center can also be explored, thus we also get the authentic Maltese feeling.

Gozo, presumably due to its relative isolation, is also considered a cheaper place, with a new, two-story, three-bedroom apartment with a private pool available for around 2000 EUR.

The Maltese rental market in brief:

It is characterized by a strong demand-driven market, fueled by:

• The effects of the short-term rental market due to tourism,
• many foreign immigrants,
• the need for company owners to have a residence,
• seasonality factors,
• the demand for human resources in key industries (e.g., iGaming).

All this means the emergence of many new residential complexes, thus boosting investment appetite and the activities of real estate developers, further heating up the market. The Maltese population, if this information is correct, lives at a relatively high standard of living, owning several investment properties. The sum of these factors results in the rental market characteristics prevailing for some time. Such as:

• A (good) apartment is rented out very quickly.
• Landlords can pass almost everything onto tenants.
• There is no need, for example, for a well-equipped kitchen; tenants have to provide most of the appliances (this was the hardest to get used to as a Hungarian).
• If anything breaks, the landlord will hold you accountable, instead of immediately fixing it at their own expense (this too).

But let the numbers speak!

In Mosta, this might not be a secret, I pay somewhere between 600-700 EUR for a ground-floor, newly built, otherwise very nice and spacious apartment's small room. Three of us live here, with two Italian guys, so learning Italian is included in the price, as well as utilities. It's also not a secret that I don't like the room, but I do like the apartment; it's modern, spacious, air-conditioned, you can have breakfast standing up, and it overlooks the Mdina Fortress. It's good to live here.

Browsing through the prices a bit, I see that a slightly worse, but still Mosta apartment room ranges from 400-550 EUR, so here locally, with some compromises, I could live for somewhat less money.

Close to Sliema, in Msida, a studio apartment of about 20 sqm is around 700 EUR. Looking at the prices in Sliema, it's rather around 1000 EUR for renting a 1-2 bedroom apartment, but the average price is around 1,200-2,500 EUR in the already mentioned prime areas.

In the cities marked as affordable, the average price for a 1-bedroom apartment is 500-1,000 EUR, while Gozo offers such apartments between 400-900 EUR. Parking is often hard to find and the utility bills are always added to this price.

And finally, a little help if someone wants to start researching. These platforms are recommended:

• If you want to find a good apartment: https://www.dhalia.com/
• If you want to get by cheaply: https://lets.flatmate.com.mt/
• If you're looking for a large selection: https://franksalt.com.mt/renting/
• And of course, Facebook groups work very well here too.

In summary, due to Malta's size and the composition of its population, as well as several other economic factors, it is characterized by a strong demand-driven market, making it not easy to find an ideal apartment at a good price. However, if you do manage to find one, it's worth seizing it as soon as possible, but at the same time, it's important to watch out for scammers and view the apartment in person before renting or paying anything in advance.

Although the island is small, it is diverse and colorful, and it's worth arriving with a well-defined set of decision criteria when looking for your future living space. I skipped this round and was very lucky. Good luck, and of course, lots of fortune!