Bagrationi district, Batumi: Soviet buildings and new builds near the centre

The Bagrationi Street area is the residential blocks of Batumi east of the centre and the Old Town, on the way to Boni-Gorodok. Under the city's division it is the Bagrationi administrative district, which since 2018 has been split into two administrative units. Soviet buildings stand here next to new complexes, construction is still going on, and the centre is within walking distance. Below is what to consider when buying, renovating and letting an apartment in this district.

Bagrationi district: close to the centre, without the resort bustle

To the west the district's boundaries run along Chavchavadze and Tbel Abuseridze streets, beyond which the Old Town and the centre begin; to the north the district reaches the sea along Baku Street; and along Bagrationi Street it borders the Javakhishvili district. There are fewer tourists here than in the Old Town, and the shops, markets, schools and clinics serve people who live in the district all year.

Apartments here are bought to live in and for long-term letting: the centre and the seaside boulevard are close, and prices are usually lower than in buildings by the sea. How the neighbouring centre of Batumi is arranged is covered separately.

New builds next door

Bagrationi has many new residential complexes, and construction is still going on. For a buyer this means two things. First: a tower may rise under the windows of an apartment in an old building within a year, blocking the light and the view. Second: in a building still under construction, the timeline and quality depend on the developer, not on the district. Besides, a building site next door is noisy and dusty for years: concrete arrives in the morning and cranes work until evening. If the apartment is for living with a small child or for working from home, we find out when the neighbouring building is due to be completed.

So before the deposit we look at what may be built on the neighbouring plots and whether a permit has been issued for them, and for a building under construction we check the developer, the permit and the schedule. The procedure is described on our page about developer checks. If you are buying an apartment in an old building, it is worth looking at the stairwell too: in Soviet buildings next to construction sites, walls and the paving round the base sometimes crack, and it is better to notice this before the deal.

Layout changes in a Soviet apartment

Soviet apartments in the district have often been altered: partitions removed, the kitchen merged with a room, the balcony glazed and joined to the room. Not all of this should have been done. Load-bearing walls and balcony slabs in a Soviet building must not be touched without a structural engineer's calculation, and wet areas should not be placed above the neighbours' living rooms: if they leak, the dispute will be long.

Before the renovation we check which walls are load-bearing, what has already been changed and whether it is reflected in the documents. If the kitchen has gas, the question of merging it with a room is settled with the gas service. How we prepare and agree layout changes is explained on our page about layout changes.

An apartment for long-term letting

Close to the centre, apartments let well long-term: to families, people who work in the city and students. Short-term letting is less common here than by the sea, and a long let does not need a designer renovation. It needs sturdy furniture, appliances that do not break down and a clear inventory in the contract.

We furnish an apartment for a long let so that the tenant can move in with a suitcase and the owner does not have to come and fix something every month. How this works is described on our page about furnishing for long-term rentals.