02.24.2022
Reading time: 2 minutes
Author: Sea Inside

When buying real estate abroad, the buyer often does not know that in addition to the cost of an apartment or house, he expects a number of additional payments – taxes, lawyer fees and other payments. Sometimes he finds out about it at the last minute. In order to protect Sea Inside buyers from unpleasant surprises, we will tell you what pitfalls exist when maintaining real estate in Georgia and what secondary expenses the owner of an apartment in Tbilisi, Batumi and other cities should expect.


Taxes
The tax system in Georgia is considered one of the most simplified. The country ranks in the ranking of countries with the most loyal taxation. This makes it easier to do business. There is no purchase tax, which exists in more than a hundred countries of the world, here (in Israel it is 9%, in Greece – 24%). There is also no annual tax on ownership in Georgia (in Greece – $9 per 1 sq.m). These rules work if you use the apartment for living, and not for earning. If you are going to make a profit from renting out a house, you must pay taxes on rental income (so-called income tax) is 5% per year. To do this, you need to contact the Tax Inspectorate with a request to register in a special register of landlords.


Utility bills in Georgia
In Georgia, utility rates are lower than in other countries. Utilities include payment for electricity (0.22 lari /kWh), water (0.50 lari/m3), gas (0.54 lari/m3), Internet ($10-$30), garbage collection (5 lari per person). On average, all together it will cost about $ 80 per month (depending on how actively you use electricity and gas). Since the heating in Georgia runs on gas, in winter, during the cold season, the bill may come more. In summer, the main share of utility bills is electricity costs (if air conditioning is installed).


Expenses for the services of the management company
In many modern houses, and even more so in large hotel and residential complexes, there are management companies (sometimes they are also called management companies). They are responsible for the protection of the house territory, cleaning the entrance, elevator maintenance and other everyday household chores. A separate service of the Management Company is assistance in real estate management. This service is often resorted to by those who own profitable apartments in one country and live in another. In this case, the management company is a good way out of the situation. She takes care of renting an apartment (search for tourists, cleaning, minor repairs) and regularly reports to the owner. On average, the management company charges 10-40% of the rental price for its services. We wrote in detail about why the MC is needed here.


Optional expenses
Optional expenses include real estate insurance. There is no law in the country obliging to insure a house – this is done at the request of the owner.


Resume
So, let's summarize. The average price of an apartment in Batumi is from $40,000. For this money, you can buy apartments on the seashore. Spending on real estate in Batumi consists of three types of expenses: these are the costs of taxes, utility bills, and payment for the services of a management company. In total, about $ 1,000 a year (the maintenance of a house in Turkey will cost $ 1,500, in Dubai – $ 2,500). At the same time, you can earn from $ 5,000 on renting. Due to the high demand for resort real estate, apartments in Batumi pay off in 5-7 years.