Contacts between border villages are already very frequent: many inhabitants of the Hungarian side cross into Romania to get supplies, while those on the other side come to buy cheaper real estate.
Romania’s accession to the Schengen area is expected to give new impetus to the decades-long process of integration on the Romanian-Hungarian border. Many people, and not just Hungarians, have already left the big cities on the Romanian side of the border to settle on the other side.
“The fact that so many people moved away played an important role in Biharkeresztes’ life. They bought a house here, they thought about continuing their life here. Of course, some travel to work, others take their children to kindergarten or school in Oradea, but many people live their daily lives here“, declared Béla Péter Dani, who added that Biharkeresztes was traditionally part of the catchment area from Oradea to Trianon.
The redrawing of the border separated families, but in recent decades the link between the district capital and the surrounding localities, which are part of Hungary, has been renewed and become more vibrant.
It is much cheaper to buy a house on the Hungarian side than on the Romanian side.
Although most people who move to Biharkeresztes are Hungarian, it is not uncommon to see properties for sale advertised in both Hungarian and Romanian. A Christmas market vendorOradeaon the other side of the border, explains this migration.
“For 15,000 euros you can buy a 250 square meter house on half a hectare here. Okay, it needs renovation, obviously. The difference is that here the infrastructures are not built, while there they already are, the sewers and electricity are connected“, explains Éva Kállai, originally from Oradea, who, although having lived in Hungary and France, feels more comfortable in her country of origin.
Buying a house in the Romanian conurbation of Oradea is therefore very expensive, but in the villages across the border it is cheap because they are in a different situation, being far from the national perspective. It takes almost three hours to get to Biharkeresztes from Budapest by car, and 3.5 hours by train, if there are no delays. The nearest town is Debrecen, an hour away by car and two hours by public transport. From there, the nearest big city is Oradea, about half an hour by bus. It’s true that buses don’t run often and you have to go through border controls – for now.
Once the border is open, travel between the two countries will of course be even faster. This could easily lead to higher property prices on the Hungarian side, where many Romanians could settle, similar to how many Bratislava residents have settled in Rajka, Hungary. Romanians in the region have long awaited the country’s accession to the Schengen area, which will facilitate the transition.
“This should have happened a long time ago, it was time for us to join the Schengen area. This opens up many opportunities, particularly economic ones. Personally, I am especially happy not to have to wait long at the border“, Adrian, a Romanian student, told us in a pedestrian street in Oradea.
Hungarians cross Romania to refuel and shop, and some even go to work
Unlike Romanians, Hungarians are not looking for cheap real estate across the border, but rather to go shopping or stock up on supplies. A few kilometers from the border, near Oradea, there is a large shopping center where we saw several cars with Hungarian plates parked. Romania currently has a 9% VAT rate on food products, allowing many people to shop here more cheaply than in their home country. Additionally, a liter of gasoline is currently around 20 forints cheaper.
Many people live in Hungary but work across the border, for example in the industrial zone of Oradea. They are perhaps the biggest victims of the current situation, at least among those living in the region. They have to commute every day, and if there is a disruption at the border, they can easily be late for work. According to the people we interviewed, cars usually pass quickly, but sometimes they have to wait half an hour.
The situation for truck drivers is even worse: they sometimes have to wait up to a day at crossing points. However, this situation will not last much longer. On January 1, the police will leave the border and, although they will continue to carry out random checks for six months, there are plans to end them.
