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The segment of luxury housing promised to show its resilience to the current crisis. But the first half has disappointed participants of the market: during this period, the sale of such objects in Moscow decreased by one third. A second quarter when the fall has reached 57% year-on-year, and all have failed. The consultants are waiting for recovery of demand in the second half of 2020, hoping that wealthy consumers will choose to purchase items de luxe alternatively, the cutting rates on deposits against the background of reduction of the key rate of the Central Bank.From January to June 2020 developers of new elite buildings in Moscow managed to sell 360 lots — a third lower than the same value last year, according to a study Knight Frank. According to analysts, a failure of the expected second quarter, when it was sold 130 lots, which is 57% lower than the same period last year. The trend is confirmed by other consultants. At Savills a drop in demand in the first half of the year is estimated at 33%. Sales of mass housing in the first five months of the year decreased by 30% and business class — even grew by 9%, give an example in the “Historical”.Dynamics significantly different from that which the consultants had predicted at the beginning of the crisis, considering the elite segment is more resistant to shocks. The Director of the office of real estate “Metrium Premium” Anna Radzhabova said that this situation has arisen because of the complex factors. Thus, the demand in the mass housing projects supported preferential mortgage 6.5%, while the luxury segment has not received such benefits. The second factor is the redistribution of demand towards the country market during the pandemic. “The isolation we had a case where the buyer made the decision to abandon almost ready to deal with the apartment in favor of country houses”,— says the expert.Head of Department of consulting and Analytics “ABC of housing” Yaroslav Darusenkov sure that the dynamics should not be taken literally: the number of transactions with the mass and elite housing varies greatly, whereby a decrease of a couple hundred in the past gives a large percentage change. The Director of the Department of urban real estate at Knight Frank Andrey Solovyov added that not many buyers of real estate are ready to make deals remotely as opposed to those who acquire mass housing. Not more than 20% of potential buyers in the luxury segment are involved in the online shows objects, and book a property in this way only a few, agrees the Director of the Department of market monitoring and evaluation Savills Anatoly Dovgan.Anna Radzhabova expects that in the second half, especially in the fourth quarter, sales in this segment will be more active due to pent-up demand. “Unless, of course, the situation in ��the emerging anyway stabiliziruemost,” she adds. Mr. Darusenkov expects that the demand for luxury housing will recover faster than the bulk, due to the fact that buyers here, to a lesser extent, faced with falling revenues. Anatoly Dovgan calls an additional incentive sales decline in the key rate of the Central Bank, which interest rate was at historically low levels. “The growth of prices for luxury housing exceeds inflation, and rent it out, you can expect on average 6% per annum,” he points out.Andrey Soloviev expects that by the end of the year growth is estimated at 7%. One of the factors of increase in prices — increase in sales of objects in a high stage of readiness. A total of up to six months, according to Knight Frank, was represented by 2,6 thousand luxury apartments. Mr. Soloviev suggests that the volume of input of new projects in the second half of the year may decline mainly due to projects at an early stage of development.Alexandra Mertsalova