Montemar in Gonio, Batumi

Montemar is a complex under construction by the developer Gumbati Group in Gonio, in the south of Batumi. According to the developer's and architects' descriptions, it consists of three 16-floor blocks on a site of about a hectare: block A is a hotel, block B an apart-hotel and block C apartments for sale. The project was designed by the Tbilisi studio Alpha Architecture, led by the architect Irakli Emiridze. The developer says the complex stands on the first coastline, a few minutes' walk from the beach.

Montemar: a complex by the sea in Gonio

Gonio lies within the city limits of Batumi but lives differently from the centre: beaches, guesthouses and the Gonio-Apsaros fortress about one and a half kilometres from the complex, and about 14 kilometres to the centre of Batumi. In summer there are many holidaymakers, in winter the village is quiet, and some cafes and guesthouses close until spring. More about the area on the page about Gonio.

The complex description lists a rooftop pool and an indoor pool, a spa, a gym, a restaurant, a coworking space and a conference room, a reception, security and parking. Units range from studios to two-room apartments, roughly 32 to 162 m², offered in white frame or finished. Gumbati Group has been building in Georgia for more than twenty years; in Batumi the company has the completed building Subtropic City.

Apartments in a hotel complex

An apartment in such a complex is bought not for living but for letting, and almost everything depends on the management agreement. The first thing we check is which block the unit is in: the hotel block or the block for sale, as their rules may differ. Before buying we find out who will manage the units: the developer, a hotel operator or the owner. How income is shared and which costs are deducted from it, how many nights a year the owner may stay, whether the unit can be let without the operator. What an apart-hotel is and how it differs from an ordinary apartment we explain separately.

We recalculate the income percentage promised in the advertising month by month: the high season in Gonio is short, and occupancy drops in winter. We run such units for owners or check the operator's work; more on the page about apart-hotel management.

Buying during construction

The complex is under construction, and the developer offers instalments: a down payment of about 20%, the rest in equal payments until construction ends. The open descriptions do not give a completion date, so we write the date and the procedure for moving it into the contract. Before paying we check the plot, the permit to build three blocks of the right height and any mortgages. Permits in Gonio are issued by Batumi City Hall. The checking procedure is described on the page about checking a developer.