Buying commercial property in Batumi: units for a business and for letting

You can buy commercial property in Batumi for your own business or to let. Either way, a unit is judged not by the view from the window but by what business can operate in it: is there an extraction duct, is the power supply enough, how many people walk past the door in winter. We shortlist units for a specific use and run the numbers before the deposit.

What is sold as commercial property

Most often these are ground-floor units in new buildings: for a shop, café, salon or office. There are also offices in business buildings, stand-alone buildings for a guest house or mini-hotel, and rooms in aparthotels. Each format lives by its own rules, and a universal unit that suits any business hardly exists. So first we decide who will operate in it, and only then look for an address.

A ground-floor unit in a new building is often sold as shell and core: concrete, windows, utility connections. The fit-out for the business falls on the buyer or the tenant. How it is done and what the developer leaves is explained on our page about fitting out a unit from the developer.

Buying commercial property in Batumi: the use in the documents

The first thing the lawyer looks at is the unit's use in the extract from the Public Registry. If the documents describe it as a residential apartment on the ground floor, opening a café there may not be simple, and the taxes and requirements for such a unit will be different. We check who the owner is, whether there are mortgages or seizures, and whether the area matches what is actually there.

If a company is selling the unit, the price may include VAT, and for a corporate buyer that is a separate question for the accountant. How the price is written in the contract and what taxes arise on purchase is covered on our page about taxes on buying property.

A unit for a business: extraction, power, signage

A restaurant needs an extraction duct and a strong power supply, a shop needs a window and footfall past the door, an office needs quiet and parking. If the unit has no extraction duct and the building rules forbid running a flue up the façade, a café will not open there, however much the square metre costs.

Before the purchase we check the supply capacity and whether it can be increased, the building rules for signs and shop windows, delivery access and space for waste. Ceiling height and columns in the main room also decide whether the necessary equipment will fit. A medical practice, a children's centre or a beauty salon may have their own requirements for the premises, and we check those for the specific business, not in general.

A tenant before you buy

If the unit is being bought to let, it is better to know in advance who will rent it. A unit with a sitting tenant costs more but earns money from day one. In that case we read the lease: its term, indexation, who did the fit-out and in what state the unit will be returned, whether the tenant can leave early.

If there is no tenant, we look at what business operated here before and why it left. Finding a tenant for a commercial unit costs 150–180 % of the monthly rent, a commercial lease contract from 660 ₾. How we manage such properties is explained on our page about commercial property management.

The season and the street

By the sea there are crowds in summer, while in winter the boulevard empties and cafés there run on a seasonal schedule. In the centre and on streets where people live all year, footfall is steadier: a pharmacy, bakery, salon or office works all year round. So the same unit can bring in very different money in summer and in winter.

We look at the street at different times: on a weekday morning, in the evening, at weekends and, if the purchase is not urgent, out of season too. We work out how many months the unit may stand empty between tenants and build those months into the calculation. A unit with its own street entrance usually lets faster than one entered from the courtyard or through the lobby of a residential building.

Taxes and the calculation

Income from letting non-residential premises is taxed differently from letting an apartment for living: the reduced 5 % rate does not apply here. Tax on sale and property tax for a commercial property are also calculated under their own rules, so we work out the arrangement for your case with a tax consultant before the purchase. More on our page about rental income tax.

An investment calculation with a shortlist of units starts from 1 200 ₾. It covers the price, the fit-out, months without a tenant, taxes and running costs. We do not promise income; we show the numbers for a specific unit.

How much commercial unit search costs

Property search for a fixed fee starts from 5 400 ₾. A legal due diligence check starts from 960 ₾, an investment calculation from 1 200 ₾, finding a tenant at 150–180 % of the monthly rent, a commercial lease contract from 660 ₾.

The final price is set after we review your brief and agree the scope of work. The registry fee, the notary's charges and taxes are paid separately.