Know the Georgian market: Tbilisi and Batumi

Georgia’s property market is really two markets. Tbilisi is a capital city where most buyers are Georgian families, with investors on top. Batumi is a Black Sea resort where foreigners buy about half the flats. Prices, buyers, languages and risks differ. Knowing both, with figures you can source, is what makes clients trust you.

Where the data comes from

Georgian market figures mostly come from three places, as reported in the press:

• Galt & Taggart, an investment research house, with monthly reports on Tbilisi and surveys of Batumi developers.
• TBC Capital, quoted for monthly Tbilisi figures.
• Colliers Georgia, quoted for monthly Batumi figures and buyer nationalities.

Registry figures from NAPR lag for new builds, because units are often registered late, so primary sales in registry data can look lower than what developers report (Galt & Taggart). Always name the source and the date when you quote a number.

Tbilisi

Volume. In 2025 Tbilisi sold 42,388 apartments, up 4.3%: 20,961 on the primary market (up 5.2%) and 21,427 on the secondary market (up 3.5%) (Galt & Taggart, January 2026). Developer surveys showed primary sales up 27.3%, the gap being the registration lag.

Prices in December 2025 (Galt & Taggart, USD per square metre):

Segment	Price
Primary market, white frame	1,373 USD, up 4.0%
Secondary, new projects	1,316 USD
Secondary, old projects	about 1,238 USD

“White frame” is a finishing level between a bare shell and a turnkey flat, and it is how Galt & Taggart compares new-build prices.

Primary prices by district (Galt & Taggart, December 2025):

District	USD per m²
Vake	2,781
Saburtalo	1,613
Krtsanisi	1,575
Isani	1,358
Didube	1,352
Nadzaladevi	1,189
Didi Dighomi	1,076
Samgori	1,065
Gldani	1,038

Mtatsminda showed 3,294 USD, but on a small sample. Say so if you quote it.

Rents and yield. The average rent was 9.8 USD per m² a month, for a gross rental yield of 8.6% (Galt & Taggart, December 2025).

2026 so far. In July 2026, 4,409 apartments sold, up 22%, worth 395 million USD, up 24%. The average price from January to July was 1,348 USD per m², up 4% (SOVA, September 2026, citing TBC Capital).

Who buys. Colliers put Tbilisi buyers at about 90% Georgian, 4% Israeli and 2% Russian (Commersant, December 2025). Galt & Taggart’s own chart may show a lower Georgian share, so quote Colliers by name.

Outlook. Galt & Taggart expected flat demand and single-digit price growth in 2026. Colliers expected no price fall.

Batumi

Volume and value. In 2025 Batumi sold 17,478 apartments, up 15%, for a market of about 1.3 billion USD, up about 24% (Investor.ge, April 2026, citing Galt & Taggart).

Prices. The average turnkey price was 1,865 USD per m² in 2025, against 1,699 USD in 2024 and 1,569 USD in 2023. Old Batumi is above 3,000 USD, the periphery below 1,500 USD.

Yield. Gross yield fell from 8.8% to 7.4%. For 2026, Galt & Taggart expected flat primary sales and prices up 4% to 6%.

2026 so far.

• First half: 7,838 apartments, up 11.4%, worth 507 million USD, up 29% (Eva Estate, August 2026, citing Colliers).
• June: 1,468 sales, foreigners 47%, new-build average 1,455 USD per m², up 22.6%, partly skewed by high-end projects.
• August: 1,235 sales, down 4.3%, worth 81 million USD, with foreign buyers at 52%, ahead of Georgians, and a new-build weighted average of 1,386 USD per m² (Business Media Georgia, September 2026, citing Colliers).

Who buys. Foreigners took 52% of 2025 sales, and Israelis 13% of all sales (Investor.ge, April 2026). Colliers’ December 2025 split was 50% Georgian, 16% Russian and 9% Ukrainian (Commersant). In Galt & Taggart’s first-quarter 2026 developer survey, foreigners were about 63% and Europeans about 18%, with Ukrainian, Russian and Belarusian buyers counted together (Open4Business, October 2026). Investor.ge (October 2025) reported growing demand from Israel and the Middle East and falling Russian demand.

The risk: unsold stock. Surveyed Batumi developers had about 12,400 unsold apartments at the end of 2025, up about 14% (Investor.ge, April 2026). Buyers have room to negotiate, and you have a duty to check the developer (lesson 4).

Tbilisi and Batumi side by side

	Tbilisi	Batumi
Sales, 2025	42,388	17,478
Typical price	1,373 USD/m² primary white frame (Dec 2025)	1,865 USD/m² turnkey average (2025)
Gross yield	8.6%	7.4%
Foreign share	About 10% (Colliers)	About half
Languages that help	Georgian, English, Hebrew, Russian	Russian, English, Hebrew, Ukrainian, Georgian

Rules every agent must know

• Apartments and non-agricultural property: foreigners can buy freely, on the same terms as Georgians (GRATA International, September 2025).
• Agricultural land: restricted to Georgian citizens and entities, except by inheritance or under a Government-approved investment plan for a foreign-owned Georgian company.
• Off plan: a buyer can be registered at NAPR as a future owner through a pre-purchase agreement, and full ownership follows completion (Legal.ge, October 2026; lesson 6).
• Residence: property worth at least 150,000 USD, under a certified appraisal, can support temporary residence since 1 March 2026 (Erickson Immigration Group). It does not give the right to work (lesson 2).

How to learn your patch

1. Pick one district or one part of Batumi and walk it: transport, schools, the sea front, new projects.
2. Track Galt & Taggart, TBC Capital and Colliers through the press, and always name the source and date.
3. Learn your buyers’ languages: Russian and English cover most foreign enquiries, Hebrew helps with Israeli buyers.
4. Ask every developer about its past projects, permits and unsold stock.

Prices and rules move fast, so check the official source before you act. See the Georgia page and markets for what CloserPass covers.

This lesson is general information, not investment advice.