Single-minded ambition

Unidevelopment, a subsidiary of Polish-based general construction firm Unibep, will kick-start its entry into the housing development market by constructing single-family homes in the Warsaw area. The firm hopes to become a national leader on the domestic single-family housing market.

"This year, we plan to purchase land for the construction of 150 single-family homes. In 2010, we plan to complete 200 homes," said Robert Micał, president of Unidevelopment.

Construction of the first development in Bialołęka will contain 30 homes. The sale of homes will start in the third quarter of 2008, but the development will not be completed until the end of 2009.

Unidevelopment later plans to construct larger homes in central Białystok. "Along with Unibep, we have a realistic chance to become the number-one developer of single-family homes [in the country]," Micał said.

"The single-family home market is an extremely attractive housing segment since its growth reaches five percent per annum," said Unidevelopment press representative Wioletta Buczek.

"On the other hand, the market is very fragmented," said Buczek. "There are currently no key players in the market, no developers which would offer a wide variety of products at the reasonable price." Warsaw is an attractive market where 5,000-6,000 houses are developed yearly.

With the single-family housing market largely untapped by major firms, Unidevelopment is hoping to capitalize on the sector's profit potential. Real estate consultancy REAS claimed the Warsaw area alone was potentially worth zł.4 billion.

Buczek noted that there are 20 housing parks being developed around Warsaw. "In comparison, there are only two or three developers. The others are small family-run firms developing single houses or a few housing parks at most. The remaining houses are developed by individuals - two- or three-person teams of bricklayers" she said.