Romanian property bubble

After the relative calm of the decade of the 1990s, since 2002 Romania has experienced a dramatic increase in property prices. Between 2002 and 2007, the median price for an old communist-era apartment rose by a factor of 10 (x 1000%), from around €10,000 to c. €100,000. Today some apartments in central Bucharest have prices comparable with those of properties in Paris or London, and in virtually every small town the median housing price rivals that of similar towns in the European Union.
The Romanian market is also atypical compared with other Central European countries. By contrast with Hungary, Poland or the Czech Republic subsequent to joining the European Union (where prices remained stationary), when Romania joined the EU in 2007, housing prices jumped by some 20%.
Causes of the rise in property prices.
The following are the most-often cited factors that have contributed to this increase in prices:
Criticisms.
It has been argued that some of the above-mentioned potential causes of Romania's rising property prices are not significant.
Popular beliefs.
Besides the official technical and economic factors, ordinary people in Romania believe that the rise in property prices was also caused by: