Summer is approaching, and the real estate market is picking up again. "Aktuaalne kaamera" looked at the changing trends on Sunday.

Twenty-five-year-old Katrin Kurvits has been living in her new home for three months. Unlike the rest of her peer group, she bought an apartment without a guarantor and saved up the down payment independently. 

For nearly a year, she put aside €2,000 each month by working multiple jobs.

"I had the equivalent of 1.6 jobs plus overtime every month. And that was also alongside school. So the idea that I want to buy a home, I want to save this money, and at the same time still go to school—it was really, really difficult," she told the show.

Twenty-four-year-old Krevon Alet-Märtson has wanted to buy a home for some time. Although he has not yet started saving in a focused way, he believes the key is finding the right property. He hopes to find a home outside the city.

"To find a place where you feel like you can do everything you want, and then figure out the financial side of how to make it work. I am trying actively to save money, but this year has not gone very well. I have not even had many expenses, but there were just some past things I had to pay off to get to that point," he said.

Both Katrin and Krevon said their friends will likely have to rely on financial help from their parents when they buy property.

"One of my friends just bought an apartment, but the down payment was mostly covered with help from his parents. I don't know anyone close to me, my age or a little older, who has bought real estate entirely on their own," said Krevon.

"I actually can't think of anyone in my circle of friends or acquaintances who has bought their home entirely from their own savings. I know a lot of people my age who own homes, but it's usually because their parents gave them €20,000–30,000, or the whole extended family helped out, or the parents took full responsibility for the purchase, but put the mortgage in the child's name. I know many people like that, and part of me is a little jealous of how easy it seems for them—but at the same time, you shouldn't be jealous," Katrin added.

Banks can lend up to 85 percent of the property's market value. Most young people can use a guarantee from the Estonian Credit and Export Guarantee Fund (EIS) to reduce the down payment, or if they have no savings at all, parents often step in by using their own property as collateral.

Karin Ossipova, head of the home loan division at Coop Pank, said close relatives can help by providing additional collateral.

"Estonians are really into real estate, and our property reform gave many people the status of property owner—and that has been a huge benefit. So now grandparents, parents can contribute not with 10 percent cash, but by putting up their own property as additional collateral for the bank," she explained

Preferences when choosing a potential home are driven by three factors.

"We are seeing a preference for practically new apartments—up to eight years old—but of course, the so-called 'sleeping district' apartments [Soviet-era apartments - ed.] are still selling, as are all kinds of historic apartments in wooden or stone buildings. It all depends on the price, preferences, and possibilities," said Risto Vähi, development manager at ELUM Kinnisvara.

Ossipova said some people may need to rein in their expectations if they come with "utopian wishes."

"I'd even say people don't dare to reach out—they think, 'Oh, I don't have any collateral anyway' or 'I don't have any ability to pay.' They don't even realize that the apartment being bought is the collateral. We're really talking about a basic ABC level. I'd say those utopian expectations actually come more with age," she said.

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