Apartments from developers in Batumi: price, reservation and contract
Buying from a developer in Batumi usually goes through a sales office: a price per square metre, a reservation, a contract for the sale of a future apartment and a payment schedule. We help at every step: we compare the price on a payment plan with the price for full payment, check the company, the plot and the permit, read the contract before the reservation and accept the apartment when the building is completed. We work under a contract with you and tell you about the project's weak points before the first payment.
What to know about the district
Since 2011 Makhinjauri, Green Cape, Gonio and Kvariati have been within Batumi city limits, so permits for seaside complexes there are also issued by the City Hall. In Chakvi and Tsikhisdziri this is done by Kobuleti Municipality, and in villages outside the city limits by Khelvachauri Municipality. When checking a permit, we first see who issued it and whether the plot's address matches the one in the contract.
By the sea, on the New Boulevard and Khimshiashvili Street, developers sell apartments in towers that many buyers purchase to let. Once such a building is completed it fills with short-stay guests, which is worth bearing in mind if you need the apartment to live in. In neighbourhoods further from the sea, projects are smaller and neighbours more often live in the building all year round.
A sales office may be right on the site or in a completed building of the same company next door. We look at both: the construction site to see the pace of work, and the completed building to understand what yours will look like in a few years.
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Apartments from developers in Batumi are sold by the sales offices of construction companies and by the agencies the developer works with. The price list is the same for everyone, but the final amount depends on the floor, the view, the floor area in the contract and how you pay. Before you reserve an apartment, these terms are worth working through on paper. Which construction stage to choose is covered on our page about new build apartments.
Apartments from developers in Batumi: how to read the price list
The developer quotes a price per square metre, and it rises with the floor and the view: the same layout on the tenth and the twentieth floor can cost noticeably different amounts. The price also changes with the construction stage. At the start of sales it is usually lower, and nearer completion higher, so a price list you saw six months ago may be out of date.
We also ask what the price does not include. That might be connecting the apartment to gas, installing meters, developer charges during renovation such as a fee for removing waste, or payment for a parking space or a storage room. Compared with the price of the apartment these sums are small, but they are better known before you sign.
For a comparison, we ask the sales office for three figures on a specific apartment: the price for full payment, the price on a payment plan, and the total under the contract with the floor area. If paying in full earns a discount, that difference is the cost of the payment plan. The down payment, the schedule and penalties for late payment are covered on our page about developer payment plans.
The reservation: what your first payment buys
Many developers ask for a reservation fee to take the apartment off the market for a few days. The reservation is often non-refundable, so we read its terms before paying: how long it lasts, whether the amount counts towards the price, and what happens if the checks find a problem and you walk away. If the reservation is paid, we push for the amount to be credited towards the price of the apartment.
Developers rarely sign a preliminary agreement. More often they go straight to a contract for the sale of a future apartment with a payment schedule, and you make the first payment under it. Verbal promises from a sales office are hard to enforce later, so everything important has to make it into that text.
The developer's contract: what to put in before signing
The developer writes the contract and writes it to suit itself, but it can be negotiated. We look at the clauses that determine your risk:
- a specific completion date and a penalty for each month of delay;
- the frame specification as a list of works, not just the words “white” or “green”;
- how the floor area is measured and what happens if it turns out smaller;
- in which cases and how quickly your money is returned;
- when the apartment is handed over under a certificate and who registers ownership;
- whether the apartment can be sold before full payment and on what terms.
If the developer refuses to change the text, that is an answer too. Then we either build the risk into the price or look for another building.
Who to check besides the sales office
The sales office tells the project's story better than anyone, but it is the documents that need checking. The lawyer looks at the registry extract for the plot: who owns it and whether a bank holds a mortgage over it. They check the building permit against what is being sold: the number of floors, the area, the use of the building. The engineer goes to the site and compares the progress of construction with the schedule in the contract.
A developer's completed buildings say the most about it: whether they were finished on time, whether the apartments are registered, how the stairwell and façade look several years on. The full procedure for this check is described on our page about the developer check.
Accepting the apartment and the first bills
Once the building is completed, the developer hands over the apartment under a certificate. It is best to go to the handover with an engineer, who checks the apartment against the contract and the frame specification, and inspects the windows, the screed, the walls, the water inlets and the consumer unit. We record every defect in the certificate with photos and a deadline for fixing it; more on our page about accepting an apartment from the developer.
On the same day we take the meter readings and find out whose name the electricity, water and gas accounts are in. In Batumi these are Energo-Pro Georgia, Batumis Tskali and SOCAR Georgia Gas. If the accounts are still in the developer's name, we agree from which date you pay, otherwise the first months of renovation may bring someone else's debt.
What our services cost when buying from a developer
A developer check, covering the company, the plot, the permit, court cases and completed buildings, costs from 1 200 ₾. We review a contract for the sale of a future apartment or a payment plan agreement from 660 ₾. Accepting the apartment with an engineer costs from 480 ₾ per property, and filing documents with the Public Registry from 240 ₾, excluding the registry fee itself.
If you want us to handle the whole purchase, from choosing the building to the handover, we act as your buyer's agent for 2–3% of the apartment price. The final price is set after we review the project and agree the scope of work, and we write it into our contract with you.
Questions and answers
How much does support cost when buying an apartment from a developer?
It depends on what you hand over to us. A developer check costs from 1 200 ₾, a review of the contract for a future apartment or of a payment plan agreement from 660 ₾, and accepting a finished apartment with an engineer from 480 ₾.
If we handle the whole purchase, from choosing the building to the handover and registration of ownership, we act as your buyer's agent for 2–3% of the apartment price. The registry fee and notary charges are paid at their own rates. The final price is set after we review the project and agree the scope of work.
Can I get a discount from a developer in Batumi?
Usually yes, but not on the price per square metre in the price list. Developers are more willing to give a discount for full payment, for buying at the start of sales or several apartments at once, and sometimes for an apartment that has been slow to sell because of its floor or view.
What the apartment comes with is also negotiable: windows, a front door, the frame specification, the payment schedule. We ask for every agreement to be written into the contract: a discount mentioned by a sales manager on the phone is hard to claim later.
Is a reservation fee for a developer's apartment refundable?
It depends on the reservation terms, and they need to be read before you pay. With many developers the reservation is non-refundable: if you change your mind, the money stays with the company. Sometimes it is returned if the buyer withdraws because of problems found during the checks.
We ask for three things: written reservation terms, the period for which the apartment is taken off the market, and crediting of the reservation amount towards the price. It is better to pay the reservation once a lawyer has looked at least at the plot and the permit.
Is it cheaper to buy directly from the developer than through an agency?
Not necessarily. In Batumi the developer itself often pays the agent's commission, so for the buyer the price at the sales office and at an agency is frequently the same. Compare the total under the contract for a specific apartment rather than the sales channels: the price, the floor area, the payment method and the frame specification.
What matters more is that the developer's agent sells that developer's apartments and protects its interests. If you need someone to check the project and read the contract on your side, that is a separate role, and the buyer pays for it.
What should I ask a developer before reserving an apartment?
Start with the documents: the registry extract for the plot, the building permit with the number of floors, the draft contract and the frame specification. Then ask about dates: when the building will be completed, when the apartment will be handed over and ownership registered, when electricity, water and gas will be connected.
Ask about costs after completion: who will manage the building and how much maintenance will be. And ask for the addresses of the company's completed buildings so you can see them yourself. If the sales office is vague about some of the answers, that is a reason to check the project more closely.