Shqiponja Square Building: an off-plan apartment project in Tirana, Albania

Shqiponja Square Building is a contemporary mixed-use development by Hein-Invest, located near Shqiponja Square in Tirana. It combines residential towers with commercial space and underground parking. According to Next Real Estate's project page, the residential part is three towers of 24, 26 and 28 floors, with shops, offices and shared spaces, designed by Pepe Gascón Arquitectura in collaboration with SAAS Architecture.

Apartments are offered at an entry price of €1,500/m², with an estimated construction period of four years. Buyers can pay in full or in two approximately equal instalments.

The site is in Laprakë, in north-west Tirana, beside the former Shqiponja (Eagle) Square. The old roundabout there is now a junction where the city's Great Ring Road meets the Tirana–Durrës motorway, one of the main roads in and out of the capital. That gives direct road links both to the city centre and towards Durrës and the coast.

The site plan attached to the permit shows the plot fronting Rruga Gjergji Legisi, with the Andrea Stefani nine-year school on the neighbouring plot.

The project holds a building permit approved by Albania's National Territorial Council (Këshilli Kombëtar i Territorit, KKT) under decision no. 21, dated 28/01/2025. It is issued to Hein-Invest sh.p.k. for a residential and commercial complex of 2, 24, 26 and 28 floors above ground and 3 floors below ground, in the Municipality of Tirana.

The permit's technical table gives a plot area of 13,879.9 m², a building footprint of 4,190 m², 74,500 m² of floor area above ground and 28,470 m² below ground, for a total built area of 102,970 m². The maximum height of the structure is 98.82 m.

A permit confirms the design has been approved. It does not replace the buyer's own checks: INTRIC's Albania guide advises using an independent Albanian lawyer to verify title and permits at ASHK, the state cadastre, before any deposit is paid.

Next Real Estate has modelled two apartment types. A 1+1 is one bedroom plus a living room; a 2+1+2 is two bedrooms, a living room and two bathrooms.

1+1 apartment: 79.87 m², purchase price €119,805. Estimated monthly rent €450–550, annual income €5,400–6,600, gross annual yield 4.51–5.51%, estimated net yield 3.61–4.41%.

2+1+2 apartment: 107.20 m², purchase price €160,800. Estimated monthly rent €550–700, annual income €6,600–8,400, gross annual yield 4.10–5.22%, estimated net yield 3.28–4.18%.

The net figures deduct 20% of rent for running costs, the upper end of the agency's 15–20% assumption, and are before taxes and financing costs.

For capital appreciation over four years, the agency sets out three scenarios against the initial price of €1,500/m² (1+1 at €119,805, 2+1+2 at €160,800):

Conservative (+5%): €1,575/m², 1+1 at €125,795, 2+1+2 at €168,840.

Moderate (+10%): €1,650/m², 1+1 at €131,786, 2+1+2 at €176,880.

Optimistic (+15%): €1,725/m², 1+1 at €137,776, 2+1+2 at €184,920.

These are illustrative projections, not guaranteed returns. The rental assumptions require market validation.

Spread over four years, the agency's growth scenarios of +5%, +10% and +15% work out to roughly 1.2% to 3.6% a year. That is a modest assumption. INTRIC's Albania guide reports Tirana prices rising 14–22% a year in 2024–2025 and expects growth to moderate towards 8–12% a year as new supply arrives. Past growth is no guide to the future, but the scenarios do not rely on recent rates continuing.

On price, the entry level of €1,500/m² compares with an average Tirana apartment price of about €1,620/m² in Deloitte's 2025 Property Index, as cited in INTRIC's guide. Location, floor, finish and completion date all affect how a given unit compares.

On rent, the agency's gross yields of 4.10–5.51% are its own estimates and sit below the 5–7% gross range that INTRIC's guide gives for Tirana. Rents for a building that is four years from completion cannot be observed today, so investors should check them against current lettings of comparable new apartments in Laprakë and nearby districts.

Foreign nationals can own apartments in Albania on the same footing as Albanian citizens (Law No. 7850), without government approval. The restrictions on foreign individuals apply to agricultural land and land within 200 metres of the coast, not to city apartments.

According to INTRIC's Albania guide, transfer tax in Tirana is charged per square metre, about €7/m² for residential property. Notary fees are typically 0.5–1% of price, ASHK registration about 0.1–0.5%, and legal fees 1–2%. Annual property tax on residential property is around 0.05% of value. Rental income is taxed at a flat 15% on net income, and capital gains at a flat 15%, for residents and non-residents alike. VAT of 20% is normally included in new-build prices, and the guide advises confirming this before signing the preliminary contract.

Albania has no golden visa. Owning a property of at least 20 m² can support an application for a one-year renewable residence permit, but it does not guarantee one.

For off-plan purchases, the guide notes that construction delays of 6–18 months are not unusual in Albania. It recommends checking the developer's record, setting out finishes in the contract, and linking payments to clear conditions.

Investors who would like to discuss Shqiponja Square Building, including the apartments currently available and the payment terms, can contact Next Real Estate through the Shqiponja Square Building page on the Next Real Estate website. We're Local. We're Global.™