The supply of apartamenty — residences located in nonresidential buildings — in Moscow has increased by 33 percent in October, while prices have fallen by 7.5 percent, according to real estate firm Metrium Group.
The company counted 4950 apartamenty, which are often elite living quarters in prestigious locations whose chief defining characteristic is that it is impossible to register in them — in 50 buildings.
However, in October the Kremlin human rights council proposed allowing people to register in apartamenty, thereby removing the main differentiator between apartamenty and apartments. Initiatives to make sure apartamenty are incorporated into social infrastructure are also under discussion. If these measures were approved, the price of apartments could shoot up 15 to 20 percent.
