Russians have changed the geography of demand for real estate abroad

In 2024, the UAE and Turkey continued to lose their positions among the most popular countries for buying real estate. At the same time, Russians’ interest in Asian countries, especially Thailand, has increased markedly

According to the results of the first quarter of 2024, Thailand became the most popular country for buying real estate abroad, accounting for over 17% of demand. For comparison, in 2023, the UAE was the leader. Such data was provided by analysts of the international broker Tranio at the request of RBC-Real Estate. The calculations are based on requests received by the company from Russians for the purchase of real estate in 70 countries this year.

According to Tranio, in general, the demand for buying real estate abroad in the first quarter of 2024 decreased by 10.7% compared to the same period last year. At the same time, there is significant growth in certain areas.

A landmark for Asia

For example, Russians’ interest in Asian real estate markets has continued to increase this year. According to experts, the demand for real estate in Thailand, which has become the leader in the number of applications this year, has increased by almost 96%. Last year, this country was in the top 3 most popular. At the same time, real estate in Bali continues to gain popularity among Russians. Last year, Indonesia entered the top 10 countries popular with Russians for the first time, and by the end of January – March it rose to the eighth place. Also, according to the results of the first quarter of 2024, the number of applications for the purchase of real estate in Vietnam increased by 43%, while the country has not yet entered the top 10 most popular.

Tranio noted the strengthening of demand from Russians for Thai real estate, which directly correlates with an increase in tourist flow during the winter season. “This year, Thailand has become the most popular destination for mass tourism among Russians, and a record figure has been achieved in terms of the number of arrivals from Russia. The number of purchase requests and transactions remains high,” said Mikhail Bulanov, co—founder and Managing Partner of Tranio.

Thailand’s high popularity is associated with the possibility of bank transfers from Russia and the development of remote real estate transactions (Photo: Shutterstock)

According to him, the popularity of this country is associated with the possibility of bank transfers from Russia, the development of remote real estate transactions and investment attractiveness. “Bali also saw a slight increase in purchase requests at the beginning of the year, but not in the same volume as in Thailand. This is a consequence of the lack of direct flights from Russia and the generally lower season there,” he added.

In addition, Georgia occupies a high position (second place in the ranking). Last year, this country was in sixth place. Tranio explained this by a decrease in demand for real estate in Turkey. Buyers consider Georgia as a close alternative in a low budget — up to $ 100 thousand.

Top 10 countries popular with Russian property buyers in the first quarter of 2023

Data: Tranio

The UAE and Turkey are losing ground

The UAE, which last year occupied the first place in the ranking of popular countries for buying real estate from Russians, moved to third place in 2024. And the total number of applications, according to Tranio estimates, for the selection of real estate in this country decreased by a quarter from January to March. Experts explained this trend by the continued price growth in the region and the emergence of alternatives — investment projects in Qatar (an increase in applications in the first quarter by 232%) and Saudi Arabia (an increase of 121%).

Another country that has enjoyed high popularity among Russians in the last two years — Turkey — also lost its position in 2024, shifting from third to fourth place. And the total number of applications in January—March decreased by 27.5% compared to the same period last year. Despite this, for the time being, Russians remain the leader among foreigners in buying housing in Turkey.

A similar trend is observed in the foreign real estate company Nevestate. We are seeing marked growth in real estate in Indonesia and Thailand, and demand continues to grow. And demand for destinations such as Turkey and Northern Cyprus, on the contrary, sank by more than 50% compared to the first quarter of 2023,” said Ekaterina Nikitina, founder of the company.

The UAE is losing popularity among Russians, while interest in other countries in the Middle East, such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, is growing (Photo: Shutterstock)

Irina Mosheva, CEO and Managing Partner of Intermark Global:

— The demand of Russians for foreign real estate in the first quarter of 2024 fell by 20% compared to the first quarter of 2023. This happened mainly due to a reduction in payment transfer opportunities and restrictions for Russians under some immigration programs. Demand is indeed moving towards Thailand, Bali and the Middle East, and not only to Dubai, but Abu Dhabi, Ras al Khaimah, Oman and Qatar are increasingly in demand.

There is a European interest

According to Tranio, in 2024, there is still interest in buying real estate in European countries — in Greece (fourth place), Spain (sixth place), France (seventh place), Cyprus (ninth place) and Germany (tenth place). The interest in these countries is largely related to the desire of Russians to obtain a European residence permit. Tranio estimates that almost a quarter of applications for the selection of real estate abroad in the first quarter are related to obtaining a residence permit or passport. A new incentive for moving to Germany was the recent changes in the law on German citizenship, allowing immigrants to apply for a passport in five years (previously — in eight years) and at the same time not give up their first citizenship regardless of the country of origin (previously — for EU citizens), analysts explained.

The growth in demand for the purchase of real estate in the EU countries was confirmed by other brokers. According to Nevestate, the share of demand for real estate in the EU in the company is 30% of the total number of requests. “Since the end of last year, the number of applications for the purchase of real estate in the EU has increased, we had deals in Hungary and Cyprus, where clients bought real estate to obtain a European residence permit. Almost 80% of them are related to obtaining the status of a residence permit in the EU through the purchase of real estate,” Ekaterina Nikitina explained. “Now we are expecting a new Hungarian program, some of our clients are also on the waiting list,” the expert concluded.

Spain remains one of the most popular countries for Russians to buy real estate to obtain Residence permit (Photo: Shutterstock)

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