Property with a terrace in Batumi: documents, water, sun and canopies

An apartment with a terrace in Batumi gives you an extra room in the open air for half the year and a place for breakfast with a sea view. Terraces come with penthouses, with lower-floor apartments opening onto a garden, on the roofs of townhouses and around villas. But a terrace also acts as a roof and as part of the building's façade, so there are more questions about it than about a balcony. We shortlist properties with a terrace and check it before the deposit.

Property with a terrace in Batumi: the types

Penthouses and duplexes have a terrace on the roof or the top floor. What to check in them is covered in detail on our page about penthouses. A garden terrace comes with lower-floor apartments in complexes: a door from the living room onto a lawn. Townhouses often have a roof terrace, and in villas it runs around the house and by the pool.

Listings also call a large balcony a terrace. So we look at the plan: the area, the depth, whether there is room for a table, where you step out from and what is overhead. A terrace 1.4 metres deep and a terrace of twenty square metres are very different, even if the headline uses the same word. A narrow one fits only a couple of chairs; a large one takes a dining table and an outdoor kitchen.

Whose terrace it is on paper

The main question is whether the terrace is included in the property's area according to the extract from the Public Registry. If it is not, it may be part of the building's roof or grounds, that is, common property that you use under the building's rules but do not own. A garden terrace by a ground-floor apartment often stands on the complex's common land.

The lawyer compares the extract, the plan and the contract, and if necessary the rules of the residential complex. That decides whether you can put a canopy, a hot tub or a fence on the terrace and who is responsible for leaks through it. In a townhouse this question is linked to who owns the land under the house; more on our page about townhouses.

Water and waterproofing

A terrace above living rooms works as a roof that people walk on. The engineer checks the fall towards the drains, the outlets, the junctions with walls and parapet, and the threshold of the door out from the room. One drain is not enough for a large terrace: if leaves block it, the water goes into the apartment. Water marks on the ceiling of the neighbours below are visible without instruments, so we ask them too.

If there are doubts, we order a roof inspection with photos and a report; it starts from 330 ₾. How a roof designed to be walked on is built is explained on our page about accessible roofs and terraces.

Sun, wind and rain

A south-facing terrace gets scorching in summer: dark tiles heat up so much that you cannot walk on them barefoot, and the living room behind the glass is hot. Without a canopy or awning such a terrace goes unused during the day. A west-facing terrace by the sea gets the sunset and evening sun, while a north-facing one stays cool in summer, but in winter its tiles take longer to dry and moss appears in the joints. Light-coloured paving and timber decking on joists heat up less than dark stone.

The wind off the sea is stronger at height, and light furniture, umbrellas and planters must be secured, otherwise the first storm will blow them to the neighbours. Rain in Batumi comes in spells of several days, and a terrace without a canopy is barely usable from October to April.

Canopies and glazing

Many people want to extend the terrace season: put up a canopy or pergola or glaze part of it. Glazing changes the building's façade, so first we find out the rules of the residential complex and what the management company says, and then agree the solution with an architect and a lawyer. In an apartment building it is often forbidden or allowed only under a common design.

Villas and townhouses have more freedom, but building permits still apply there. How terraces and verandas are glazed is explained on our page about terrace glazing, and how the terrace itself is laid out on our page about terrace design.

Living and letting

For living, the terrace becomes a summer living room: a table, an outdoor kitchen, plants. In winter the furniture has to go somewhere, so we check whether there is a storeroom or space under a canopy. Plants on a terrace need a tap and a drain, and planters full of soil are heavier than they look, so their weight is checked.

Guests readily pay for a terrace with a view, and an apartment with one stands out from the neighbours'. But the building's rules on noise and parties on the terrace need to be known in advance, and the listing should say plainly that parties are not allowed if the building has decided so. Neighbours with someone else's terrace above their bedroom will be the first to complain about noise after 23:00.

How much a property-with-terrace check costs

Property search for a fixed fee starts from 5 400 ₾. A technical inspection of an apartment before purchase starts from 480 ₾, of a house from 1 200 ₾, a roof inspection with a report from 330 ₾, a legal due diligence check from 960 ₾.

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.