A studio apartment for 100? Never in my life!

Plot by the river for PLN 25. PLN, a studio apartment in the center of Warsaw for PLN 100, lunch in the employee canteen for PLN 8,50? 20 years after the premiere of the cult comedy "Never in Life", we look at the financial life of Judyta Kozłowska. And we can say one thing: these prices won't come back - never in my life. Although at the same time, some might say "Judith, don't be dramatic", since we are much richer than 20 years ago.

Recently, we celebrated the 20th anniversary of the premiere of the romantic comedy "Never Once in a Lifetime", considered by many to be a cult. In the film, we learn about the adventures of Judyta Kozłowska (played by Danuta Stenka), who is abandoned by her husband and has to deal with the lack of housing and love. Over the last 20 years, a lot has happened - both globally and in our country. When an economist watches this film, he or she pays attention to certain details that are sometimes missed if we treat the film as ordinary entertainment.

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“This apartment felt like his.”

The first thing that catches our eye are the prices we see on the screen. Their level in the film is significantly different from today, and we have already become unaccustomed to such low prices. Let's start with apartment prices. Judyta gives up on the purchase (financed by her ex-husband) of a studio apartment in the center of Warsaw for around PLN 100 and instead buys a plot of land on the bank of a picturesque river for PLN 000. When it comes to studio apartments in Warsaw, they have been one of the best-selling properties in Europe for the last 25 years. If Judyta had bought this property in Śródmieście instead of building a house, she could sell it today for at least PLN 000 (20 m² times PLN 750 per 000 m² in Śródmieście). This spectacular 30-year profit of 25% is the result of an annual price increase of "only" 000%. – this is the magic of compound interest.

Over these 20 years, cumulative inflation amounted to 167 percent, i.e. an average of 5 percent. each year. The highest rate was recorded in 2022 – 14,4%. The lowest, in turn, was in 2015, when we recorded annual deflation of 0,9%.

“I have to live away from the city?”

However, Judyta gives up the apartment in favor of building a house on a picturesque plot overlooking the river. Its price in the film is 25. zloty. The price increased to this level during the negotiation process between Judyta and the owner, because initially the plot was supposed to cost only PLN 10. zloty. On this plot, Judyta builds a house made of wooden logs, with the help of a team of highlanders. This house was actually built for the film, specifically in Goławice near Pomiechówek. The river we watch in the film is the Wkra river flowing through this town. We do not know the size of Judyta's plot, which would be crucial to determining its current price. However, if we assume that it had an area similar to an average building plot, i.e. about 1 m² (000 hectare), its price could currently be about PLN 0,1-150. zloty. The value of the plot could increase by up to approximately 200 percent during this period.

In this calculation, we do not take into account the fact that Judith's real plot of land and house became even more expensive due to the popularity of the film itself. Many people would be happy to live in such an "iconic" place and would be ready to pay more for it than for a house with similar parameters.

"Judith, nothing happens without a reason"

The last price we paid attention to is the price of lunch in the company canteen, for which Judyta pays PLN 8,50. Currently, the same two-course dinner costs around PLN 25. This means a price increase of 194%, only slightly above the cumulative inflation of this period. As you can see, the prices of average meals have increased much less than the prices of apartments and plots.

However, it is worth remembering that over these 20 years we have become much richer. In February 2004, the minimum wage was PLN 824, while currently it is PLN 4242 gross, which means an increase of 415%. However, the average monthly salary in the enterprise sector increased from approximately PLN 2400 to over PLN 7750, i.e. by over 220%.

Movie "Never in my life" gained cult status because in an interesting way it told the adventures of Judith with a lack of shelter and lack of love. Despite the difficult situation, the main character wins twice. The way she dealt with the housing problem could be an inspiration for many Poles to also look for a way to have a dream roof over their heads. A few years after the premiere of "Never in My Life", a real boom in housing loans began in Poland. Some might think that this was partly thanks to Judyta Kozłowska.

About the author

Pawel Majtkowski - analyst eToro on the Polish market, which shares its weekly commentary on the latest stock market information. Paweł is a recognized expert on financial markets with extensive experience as an analyst in financial institutions. He is also one of the most cited experts in the field of economy and financial markets in Poland. He graduated from law studies at the University of Warsaw. He is also the author of many publications in the field of investing, personal finance and economy.