Re: Prices in Hungary(was part of post on Sunday Indo article)
I believe... that it's hard for foreigners to tell what locals want.
I agree that local knowledge is paramount. However, I think that living in HU and talking to locals all day, every day, in their own language, is also useful. I've noticed too that many locals in Hungary (and indeed everywhere) can be limited by their own experience. I would apply this logic to myself also and always check local versus international perspective as much as possible.
Central Prague is a typical example of differences in local and international perspective, where for the past decade, locals have been consistently priced out of the downtown by international buyers, who have pushed up the market to extraordinarily high levels.
In Budapest, what locals and international buyers want is sometimes different but from living here, the common elements become more apparent and the market starts to make much more sense.
In my experience, some locals make the decision to buy a small new apartment in the middle of nowhere, perhaps because getting finance for new builds can be easier. Many I've spoken to then regret their decision if they find out that they could have purchased a much nicer classic apartment in a premier neighbourhood at a lower price. Every decent agent will tell you that if they come across a realistically-priced smaller apartment with no problems in a renovated building on a nice street in V or VI, that they will sell it in a matter of days. Local and international buyers want to buy these properties, which appeal to buyer and renter alike.
I've noticed a huge difference too in attitude between those younger Hungarians who have lived abroad for a while versus those who haven't. Of the former, almost everyone I've met would prefer to live in a nice building in downtown Pest, as close to the action as possible, while the latter are more interested in price than location and possibly, but not necessarily, prefer Buda. Younger Hungarians certainly seem to be less in tune with the property market than their obsessive Irish equivalents and few I've spoken to could tell the real value of property in various locations in their city.
What I'm really interested in purchasing is what both locals and foreigners are interested in buying but also renting - a difficult task, but now and again, such properties do come to the market - at least for a few days anyway!