In some areas of El Salvador, the difference between having or not having a security gate can vary the price of a used home that is for sale by up to 30%.
In the metropolitan area, the sale prices of real estate are so variable that, according to real estate agents, it is almost impossible to get data on the average value of a square meter in a given area.
The restriction of loans for house purchase by banks, together with the lower demand for rentals is keeping the sector depressed.
According to estimates by the Salvadoran Chamber of Real Estate sales and rentals of houses have fallen by 40% since 2009.
An article in Elsalvador.com reports that José Ventura Salvadoran president of the Chamber of Real Estate (CSBR) said, "although the housing deficit totals 444,000 homes, according to the Department of Housing, 'restrictive policies and the strict criteria of the banks for loan approvals, even to customers who before the crisis were guaranteed approval, has reduced the number of Salvadorans who can afford a house. "
Safety and accessibility are the determining factors for the price of leases.
The price of renting a three-story house, air conditioned with garage for several vehicles and located in a middle class area is around $5000. In comparison a one storey, three bedroom is around $1000.
The study by newspaper El Mundo in collaboration with the Chamber of Real Estate, details the 10 most expensive areas in which to rent a house.
The sale of houses has fallen 70% and the most affected range of housing is that of more than $150 thousand, explains Gonzalo Olano, an expert in real estate.
Elsalvador.com publishes: "Olano adds that various apartment projects have remained stalled, well, "the problem of all of this is that banks are not giving credit."
"The drop in the demand is also recognized by the representatives of the Salvadorian Chamber of Real Estate, the organizing entity of the XIV Congress Fecepac 'Investment real estate agency: the Engine of development in Central America'."