Words: Keith Osborne
Published: 6th March 2008
Russia – Top 10 research resources
As we continue our search for the best online resources for property destinations around the world, this week we take a look at
Russia – not only an increasingly important source of second-home buyers, but also a buying destination in its own right.
Although inequality is high and it’s often the billionaire oligarchs who grab the headlines, there is a growing middle class of Russians able to fund overseas property purchases, in places as diverse as
Eastern Europe and
south-east Asia.
Russia has also hit the headlines as a buying destination. A few years of huge growth in property values in some areas of Russia, particularly
Moscow, has attracted interest from foreign investors. St. Petersburg and
Krasnodar (location of the 2014 Winter Olympics) are also tipped as investment hotspots.
We’ve scoured the internet and used our network of contacts to come up with a list of 10 useful resources for agents and developers keen to enter the Russian market. Please feel free to share your favourite Russian sites by entering a comment below:
1-Property.ru. Claiming to be Russia’s largest property portal, it covers a wide range of destinations worldwide, though its property content is not large by the standards of UK portals. It operates on a subscription basis, with individual listings starting at €50 for three months, though there are discounts for listing larger numbers of properties.
International Residence magazine. Bi-annual print magazine launched in 2004, published by aiGroup. It claims a circulation of 35,000, 40% of whom are subscribers, and a readership of around 100,000. Its downloadable media pack shows some impressive readership demographics – high-net-worth individuals and established property investors. It benefits from exposure at the publisher’s International Property Shows and other events (e.g. Golf and Luxury Travel shows) and a sister publication, www.leisure.ru, provides cross-marketing opportunities in the luxury leisure and travel sector.
Moscow International Property Shows. Organised by aiGroup, this bi-annual show takes place in April and November, bringing exhibitors face-to-face with Russian buyers. The site already lists a host of international participants, including well-known names like Coldwell Banker, Pafilia and Vale do Lobo. It also has comprehensive information about participating in the show and organising your trip.
Russian Real Estate Blog. Regularly updated and useful source of real estate news and aggregated news from a range of quality international sources. The articles relate to commercial and residential real estate, covering the domestic Russian market and overseas stories relating to Russian companies and consumers.
Homes Overseas Russia. With a circulation of 30,000 via news-stand, airports and a database of high-net-worth individuals, the Russian edition of Globespan Media’s Homes Overseas magazine will be published in 8 issues in 2008 (up from 6 last year). It carries a mix of licensed content from the UK edition and bespoke articles for the Russian market. Advertising enquiries for the Russian edition are dealt with from HO’s London office.
Russo-British Chamber of Commerce. Organisation offering weekly news alerts and a monthly magazine to members, as well as organising networking events, seminars and training from offices in London, Moscow and St. Petersburg. Members have access to the RBCC database, offering market research, online advertising and direct marketing opportunities. Individual membership costs £300 and corporate membership starts at £500, dependent on the revenue of your company.
Real Estate Investment World. The company’s 2nd annual conference dedicated to Russia takes place over 3 days in London in April 2008, focused on investing in property in Russia and the CIS. It’s aimed at high-end delegates and the number of attendees is limited. The site contains details of the programmes of events and guest speakers, as well as participation fees.
Medhead.com. This innovative new portal offers property in Mediterranean countries with listings in 7 languages, including Russian. Though other portals, notably
Green Acres and
Properazzi, offer multiple language listings, Medhead is the only one able to offer all its listings in all languages. The owners also claim to get high rankings for property terms on Google Russia.
Moscow Times Real Estate. Domestic and international property news and articles, plus monthly and quarterly downloadable magazines dedicated to the domestic Russian residential and commercial property market, all free to access online.
Kommersant. English-language business news resource from Russia, giving a thorough overview of commerce and economics in the country. Though there’s no dedicated property strand, there’s a search facility for finding relevant industry stories.
If you're researching other destinations, please refer to our other articles:
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