Affordable apartments in Batumi: what the discount is for and the total cost

Affordable apartments in Batumi do exist, but a low price always has a reason. Further from the sea, a low floor, an old building, an early stage of construction, a small area or a shell without renovation. Some reasons will not bother you; others will make the apartment expensive to live in or to sell. We shortlist affordable apartments and find out in advance what exactly the discount is for.

Affordable apartments in Batumi: where the low price comes from

Most often the price is lowered by the distance from the sea and the view. An apartment ten minutes' walk from the shore costs noticeably less than the same one on the seafront, and living there all year can be more convenient. Low floors and windows onto the courtyard or a neighbouring building are cheaper too.

Other reasons are the age of the building and the condition of the apartment. Soviet blocks and resale apartments without renovation cost less than new builds, a shell is cheaper than a finished apartment, and an apartment at an early stage of construction is cheaper than one in a completed building. In all these cases part of the saving later goes on renovation or waiting.

The cheapest offers and their risks

There are also discounts with a risk behind them. A little-known developer with no completed buildings, apartments on floors that are not in the permit, a plot mortgaged to a bank. Such an apartment can wait years for commissioning and registration. How this is checked is described on our page about developer due diligence.

Small aparthotel rooms sold as apartments are a separate story. They may have a hotel use, and then different rules apply to them: on sale they may be taxed as non-residential premises at 20 %. The risks of buying in Georgia are collected on our page about risks when buying property.

Where to look for affordable apartments

Affordable apartments are more often found in districts where people live all year: Boni-Gorodok, the Airport district, the blocks around Heroes Alley and the Airport Highway. The sea is further away, but shops, schools and transport are close and the neighbours are permanent.

In resale, Soviet apartments in and around the centre can be affordable: roomy, but with old services. What to look at in such apartments is covered on our page about resale homes. Small studios by the sea are also cheap to buy into, but competition in short-term letting there is strong; more on our page about studios.

What not to skimp on

On a small budget it is tempting to save on the checks. But it is precisely in the cheap segment that you more often find apartments with debts, questionable layout changes, no registration or a problem building. A legal due diligence check starts from 960 ₾ and a technical inspection of the apartment from 480 ₾, and that is less than a single mistake costs.

If a full check seems expensive for your budget, start with a consultation with a property lawyer: up to an hour costs from 155 ₾. In it you can go through the documents of a specific apartment and see whether a full check is needed.

The full price of the apartment

We compare not the listing price but the total up to your first day living there or letting. On top of the price come renovation if the apartment is a shell or old, furniture and appliances, the registry fee and the notary if the deal is notarised. Monthly there are the building's service charge, utilities and property tax, if it applies to you.

Sometimes a slightly dearer apartment with a renovation in a good building comes out cheaper in total than a cheap apartment that has to be redone. We run this calculation before the deposit, on specific options.

If you do not have the money for everything at once, you can spread the purchase and renovation over time: buy an apartment in a building to be completed in a year or two and pay to the developer's schedule. But then the main risk shifts to the developer, and they need to be checked especially carefully. How such a purchase works is explained on our page about apartments on a payment plan.

Letting an affordable apartment

An affordable apartment in a residential district usually lets better long-term: tenants care about price, warmth, a washing machine and transport, not the view. Short-term letting far from the sea works less well: guests choose a walk to the beach.

If the apartment is by the sea but small and simple, it will be taken in summer, but in winter you will have to lower the price. We do not promise income; we work it out from similar apartments in the same area. For an affordable apartment it also matters who will buy it from you later: in residential districts that means local families and couples, and they care about the same warmth, transport and schools.

How much affordable apartment search costs

Property search for a fixed fee starts from 5 400 ₾, or we work as a buyer's agent for 2–3 % of the price. A technical inspection of the apartment before purchase starts from 480 ₾, a legal due diligence check from 960 ₾, a consultation with a property lawyer of up to an hour from 155 ₾.

The final price is set after we review your brief and agree the scope of work. The registry fee and the notary's charges are paid at their own rates.