Rarities for millionaires

It is no secret that in the area called “Golden triangle” (an area bounded by Nevsky prospect and Fontanka and Neva rivers embankments) a square metre of prestigious apartments is valuated at 10,000 US dollars. However, in this area you can buy much cheaper apartments. Fo prestigious r the time present. Director of NEVSKY PROSTOR AGENCY Alexander Ginovker, a vice-president of Real Estate Association of Saint-Petersburg, believes that soon even those ones will go up, since prestigious apartments in the center are in short supply.

When we talk about prestigious apartments in the center, first of all we mean facade apartments. They are the very apartments which would-be owners are ready to pay several millions dollars for. But if you can see neither the Neva nor the Moika from their windows or the main entrance is poor, the price goes down to $5,000 – $6,000 per square meter. Furthermore, courtyard-located apartments sharing the same buildings with million-dollar façade apartments are even cheaper: $3,000-$4,000 per square meter.

But the cheapest apartments as compared to façade ones are those located in the second and third courtyards. At present you can buy them “only”for $1,200 – $1,500 per square meter. However, the investment attractiveness of such properties proves to be highly perspective. As early as 2003 NEVSKY PROSTOR AGENCY sold a second-courtyard apartment on Griboedova Kanal embankment for $1000 per square meter. Now this apartment is for sale again, but at a fourfold price! You have to admit that no bank will give you 100% annual rate in hard currency.

Source "Arguments and facts"          

23 November 2005