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Author Topic: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg  (Read 4630 times)

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Offline Noypioz

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Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« on: January 11, 2019, 07:57:20 PM »
Greetings!

I just came back from a 15-day trip to Yekaterinburg last December to meet a couple of ladies I met through Steveboy's bridesandlovers.com site and I noticed the abundance of high-rise developments in and around the city. I've read foreigners are allowed to purchase property in Russia with some exceptions and I've been told mortgage interest rates are arount ~10%+ pa.

Anyone here own a property or have a connection and can provide more information about investment property outlook in Yekaterinburg? Cheers!

 

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

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Offline Steveboy

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #1 on: January 12, 2019, 01:31:44 AM »
Greetings!

I just came back from a 15-day trip to Yekaterinburg last December to meet a couple of ladies I met through Steveboy's bridesandlovers.com site and I noticed the abundance of high-rise developments in and around the city. I've read foreigners are allowed to purchase property in Russia with some exceptions and I've been told mortgage interest rates are arount ~10%+ pa.

Anyone here own a property or have a connection and can provide more information about investment property outlook in Yekaterinburg? Cheers!

Buying property In Russia is a very straight forward process if you do not have the cash for a straight out purchase there are only a few banks in Russia that will give you finance best being  https://www.vtb.ru  but you will need 30/40% deposit depending on what building company you purchase the property from. Most of the big building companies have their own agents who handle every thing for you including uploading your bank application for finance but Im not sure if you will find any English speaking ones to help you in Yekaterinburg.. Probably the only real option is if you have a Russian "other half" Unless you can speak Russian or have a Russian wife its probably not really worth considering though.

A popular option is to Buy before completion, for example you find a nice property that will be completed in 12/18 months and buy that , put down a deposit and take a loan out on the balance , you can usually make a nice profit by the time the property is completed.

Interstate's rates are around 10% sometimes more but it's not so bad property prices are pretty good , probably very good there! So you shouldn't be paying too much especially if you can pay it off in a couple of years, we are taking a mortgage out with VTB in the next few months.
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Offline redroo

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #2 on: January 12, 2019, 06:22:55 AM »
Pretty sure you'll find apartments in Ekaterinburg are NOT an "investment" in financial terms, only in marital terms...... Happy wife, happy life :-)
Both new builds, and old are shoddy, and nothing gets maintained. Parking is now a real issue as every man and his dog has a car. Old buildings have only street parking (pay your own security), and because new buildings charge extra for a carpark even the Merc owners won't pay.
I have lived there on and off for 15 years, and never bought one myself. The winters are brutal mate.....especially for an Aussie who thinks +15c is cold. When it gets down into the minus 40c's it hurts to breathe Then after a week of -30s you'll get a -15c blue sky day and the wife will drag you off to Shartash Lake for a BBQ and towing a "banana" behind the snowmobile. Suddenly all those winter Christmas movies make sense :-D


Offline Steveboy

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #3 on: January 12, 2019, 06:37:33 AM »
Pretty sure you'll find apartments in Ekaterinburg are NOT an "investment" in financial terms, only in marital terms...... Happy wife, happy life :-)
Both new builds, and old are shoddy, and nothing gets maintained. Parking is now a real issue as every man and his dog has a car. Old buildings have only street parking (pay your own security), and because new buildings charge extra for a carpark even the Merc owners won't pay.
I have lived there on and off for 15 years, and never bought one myself. The winters are brutal mate.....especially for an Aussie who thinks +15c is cold. When it gets down into the minus 40c's it hurts to breathe Then after a week of -30s you'll get a -15c blue sky day and the wife will drag you off to Shartash Lake for a BBQ and towing a "banana" behind the snowmobile. Suddenly all those winter Christmas movies make sense :-D

Both new builds, and old are shoddy, and nothing gets maintained. . I think your still living in the Soviet era.. :laugh:
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Offline Gipsy

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #4 on: January 12, 2019, 10:06:57 AM »
Non residents can purchase/own property in most cities, they may also own land, but there are rules as to where.
It is difficult for a foreigner resident in Russia to obtain a mortgage in his/her own name, so would imagine that a non resident would have no chance.
Yekaterinburg is a good place for investment and rentals are sought after.
Beware of buying anywhere which is under construction, and paying in full before completion, bankruptcies in the construction industry are rife as well as being planned to fleece the customers.
There is now a new law where places under construction can be bought with a 10% deposit and the remains being payable upon completion and sign off by the relevant authorities.
Good Luck with such a venture..
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Offline BillyB

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #5 on: January 12, 2019, 11:20:15 AM »

Beware of buying anywhere which is under construction, and paying in full before completion, bankruptcies in the construction industry are rife as well as being planned to fleece the customers.
There is now a new law where places under construction can be bought with a 10% deposit and the remains being payable upon completion and sign off by the relevant authorities.


I've seen a lot of empty building shells not completed in the FSU. I've bought two apartments in Ukraine with some down and the rest later. Foreign investors need to know there are some risks. Nations over there can change laws and make it illegal for them to own homes. Confiscation of property increases as relations between nations deteriorate. The rewards can be great since the  Western currencies are real strong against certain FSU currencies and if conflict ends and relations improve, there'd be a good return off investments. Time to buy it cheap is now.
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Offline Noypioz

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #6 on: January 13, 2019, 07:42:44 AM »
Many thanks guys for your inputs. Definitely lots to consider. Agree with Billyb now is the best time to buy but as Gipsy bluntly pointed out, a non-resident will have no chance of getting a mortgage. I have extra cash for a deposit but I’m not totally convinced rental income can cover at least 30% mortgage repayment per year. I also agree with redroo regarding maintenance. I stayed a few nights in a 5 year-old building and there were long cracks everywhere inside the unit. Outside, there was a 2m x 1m patch of untiled floor in front of the lifts when I asked my friend whether this has been reported, she said “yes, 2 years ago” (???). What actually made me entertain the idea was a beautifully restored 1 bedroom ground floor apartment in an old building right along Lenina Prospekt 53 (booking.com). I booked it for 2 nights and upon check out, I asked the owner how much he bought it for. He said 3.2m rubles and he restored it himself. He bought it as an investment for his daughter who is studying at the nearby uni and leases it out through Airbnb/booking.com during holidays. The location is perfect but such offerings come rarely and if they did, he said they get sold quickly. Oh well...dream on
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Offline redroo

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #7 on: January 13, 2019, 08:20:36 AM »
No Steve, I live in Ekaterinburg every year for months on end....unlike you....and I don't make apologies for everything "Russian"
Construction is crap in Ekaterinburg. Always was in Soviet days, still is.
I have an exlaw in the real-estate game here in town, and have looked at many, many apartments with her while tagging along. Walls are not straight, floors are cracked, steps are uneven heights, tiles will start in a hall and then stop, don't even get me going about plumbing and wiring.
If you are skilled and can renovate yourself, then yes, you could have a lovely old apartment with high ceilings just the way you want it......but that comfort ends at your front door.
As others have agreed, finance is your big issue as a foreigner

Offline Steveboy

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #8 on: January 13, 2019, 09:05:02 AM »
No Steve, I live in Ekaterinburg every year for months on end....unlike you....and I don't make apologies for everything "Russian"
Construction is crap in Ekaterinburg. Always was in Soviet days, still is.
I have an exlaw in the real-estate game here in town, and have looked at many, many apartments with her while tagging along. Walls are not straight, floors are cracked, steps are uneven heights, tiles will start in a hall and then stop, don't even get me going about plumbing and wiring.
If you are skilled and can renovate yourself, then yes, you could have a lovely old apartment with high ceilings just the way you want it......but that comfort ends at your front door.
As others have agreed, finance is your big issue as a foreigner

Maybe that is the case there! And it probably is in St Petersburg at some places , many years ago friends said don't buy anything here its all poor quality building cracks in the walls and usual stuff, but that was a few years back and for absolute sure the standards have improved 1000% with the main building companies. But I would say the quality of new builds now is far better than just a few years back we have been looking around many new builds and they compare to the quality any where else , but as any where you get what you pay for..

If your in St Petersburg any time give me a shout, I will put the kettle on.. my place doesn't have any cracks, loose tiles .. as for the maintenance never been a problem, everything is fixed within 24 hours, only recently had a faulty radiator , called them up and they fixed it that day!

Maybe Im just lucky.. ;D

I also noted a few times when people post pictures of their apartments lobby/entrance Im thinking where the bloody hell are you living!  :laugh:
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Offline Manny

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #9 on: January 13, 2019, 09:51:37 AM »
What kind of money are these apartments?
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Offline Steveboy

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #10 on: January 13, 2019, 10:40:14 AM »
What kind of money are these apartments?

I can't comment on Yekaterinburg but for St Petersburg you get what you pay for,

You can buy a 65 Square meter 2 room apartment for around 4 million roubles some times more some times less, but if you want a quality home you need to spend about 10 million
roubles min , spend 15 million and you will get the same quality as any where else in Europe and that would be for about 100-120 square meters for sure there would be no loose tiles, cracks or bad plumbing
Nearly all the nice new builds now come with underground parking which you can buy additionally for about 1 million roubles or there about's , most are gated so you can turn up in your car wind the window down
and click the gates to open or if your on a push bike like myself just take the key out of your pocket and click..

We already have two small studios for the kids and have spent the last 12 months looking at lots of properties as we need a bigger place for us , our kitchen already is used as the office no room to eat!

St Petersburg has several long established building companies who seem to have a monopoly on most of the projects they seem pretty safe bets and have been around for over 25 years , so I don't see them
going bust any day soon, though I cannot comment on smaller building firms as I don't know, Im no fool and nor is the wife we have done lots of research over the last few years and had some experience.

So if you have some cash what can you get?

One of the best companies here is https://lesnaya.life

The buildings are comparable to any apartments in Europe and all built AND finished with the best materials 14 million roubles will buy you a nice place and for 100% there will be no cracks in the walls
loose tiles, unsure doors and so on..

http://docklands.ru/apartments/flat-loft.       The same again 10 -15 million and you have the same as you would in London..

https://5zvezd.spb.ru.   We looked at these places 9/12 million not bad ..

https://gorizont.rbi.ru/galereya/       Very nice apartments we looked at a fair few here, the whole complex is spotless, well maintained, no loose bricks, broken tiles , wobbly floors, waiting 2 years for the radiator to be fixed
and so on..

A little more expensive there 15 million for 85 square meters..

https://www.setlcity.ru/projects/palatsio/progress  we are planning to move into this complex mid/end of summer phase one is already completed and many of the apartments are already sold, probably 30 %
are sold when the building was first started by investors who will sell them on 6 months before completion.

There is a brand new metro station being built 2 mins walk from the block opening June this year so maybe it will add value to the place, who knows..

And lastly on Yekaterinburg, surely if you have been spending many years living there every winter or when ever by now you would be living in a nice gaff without broken tiles, broken lift, no maintenance and cracks in the walls.. if not what the hell have you been doing? just saying..

 
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Offline redroo

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #11 on: January 13, 2019, 07:02:07 PM »
I have a choice family owned homes, and I'm very comfortable thank-you. I have not bothered to buy was my answer, even after 15 odd years here. I am NOT a handyman, and prefer to get better returns on my money elsewhere. I certainly do not see Ekaterinburg as "investment central" when it comes to apartments.
You'll notice I offered no opinion on Moscow or St Petersburg......because I have no experience there.
Now Odessa I have an opinion.....and again that's because I spend part of every year living there. Again I choose to rent rather than buy. My choice based on my experience. Others will do what is right for them.

If I make it back to St P one day soon, I'll take you up on that cuppa.. :-)

Offline Steveboy

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #12 on: January 14, 2019, 10:31:07 AM »
If you have a Russian other half in Russia you don't need lots of money to buy a place or two, she can buy it and put the property in your name later if she doesn't run off..

If you have not got to much cash there are always around it, estate agents here offered many options , seems even if your other half is unemployed she can take a loan out. For 18,000 Roubles providing she has no bad credit they will employ her with their kind of bogus company, fix all the tax documents and pension stuff as the bank will check with the relevant authorities that you really have a job.. :laugh:

They guarantee acceptance from the bank and you only pay the 18,000 fee once you have credit granted from the bank.. you need 10% deposit and pay about 10/12% ..

Im not sure what would happen if you defaulted though maybe the KGB would call around kick the door down and take your other half to Siberia.. ;D
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Offline Noypioz

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #13 on: January 16, 2019, 04:01:00 AM »
If you have a Russian other half in Russia you don't need lots of money to buy a place or two, she can buy it and put the property in your name later if she doesn't run off..

If you have not got to much cash there are always around it, estate agents here offered many options , seems even if your other half is unemployed she can take a loan out. For 18,000 Roubles providing she has no bad credit they will employ her with their kind of bogus company, fix all the tax documents and pension stuff as the bank will check with the relevant authorities that you really have a job.. :laugh:

They guarantee acceptance from the bank and you only pay the 18,000 fee once you have credit granted from the bank.. you need 10% deposit and pay about 10/12% ..

Im not sure what would happen if you defaulted though maybe the KGB would call around kick the door down and take your other half to Siberia.. ;D

Still in the early stages of the relationship and we’ll see how it develops after her visit to Sydney this July. She’s 30, working as an HR Manager and she’s paid-off her 1 bedroom apartment in 2016 so obtaining credit and putting the property under her name temporarily should be viable... but of course this is further down the track.
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

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Online andrewfi

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #14 on: January 16, 2019, 04:07:23 AM »
Number one thing on the list of silly things blokes do:
Buy real estate in somebody else's name.
When you do that you are giving that person a gift of that property and you will have no recourse if you change your mind. If you buy a place it will be hers, not yours.
...everything ends always well; if it’s still bad, then it’s not the end!

Offline Gipsy

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #15 on: January 16, 2019, 04:35:31 AM »
Number one thing on the list of silly things blokes do:
Buy real estate in somebody else's name.
When you do that you are giving that person a gift of that property and you will have no recourse if you change your mind. If you buy a place it will be hers, not yours.

That is correct, even if you are living together.
However, if you are married, then the property (although in her name) belongs to each of you, 50/50, that is provided the property was purchased AFTER the marriage.
In the event of a divorce, anything bought before the marriage or inherited or gifted, belongs to the partner stays with the partner unless part of it is "gifted" to the other partner, or if the "other" partner has contributed significantly to any improvements and can substantiate this with evidence in said name.
In the event of death, its a  different scenario.

Btw, 1 room app's within the EKAD of Ekaterinburg, new build, in construction, near completion, completed, up to approx. 7 yrs old, can be bought starting at about 1.7m/r upwards.

HTH..
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Online andrewfi

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #16 on: January 16, 2019, 06:40:41 AM »
Doing stuff married is different to before. But I think our hero was entering a mindset where he bought before even getting married.

Another thought is this: whilst I am certain that all the women who you think of marrying are paragons of virtue, some people are not completely honest. It is not hard to imagine the possibility of a person agreeing to marriage knowing that real estate was in the offing. When divorce occurs, no matter that she is supposed to give up half the property, what's a guy going to do from his Fortress of Solitude in the Land of the Free?

In a perfect world perfect outcomes are expected. In the real world life and outcomes are far more likely to be imperfect.
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Offline Noypioz

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #17 on: January 21, 2019, 05:20:34 AM »
Doing stuff married is different to before. But I think our hero was entering a mindset where he bought before even getting married.

Why on earth would your hero think of that Andrew??? Tsk..tsk..tsk  :'(
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

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Online andrewfi

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Re: Any insights on investing in property in Yekaterinburg
« Reply #18 on: January 21, 2019, 10:31:51 AM »
Doing stuff married is different to before. But I think our hero was entering a mindset where he bought before even getting married.

Why on earth would your hero think of that Andrew??? Tsk..tsk..tsk  :'(

I hope you were not but from the words you chose to write I drew an inference that led me to write as I did.
...everything ends always well; if it’s still bad, then it’s not the end!


 

 

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