How to choose the right apartment to buy: what to look for

Choosing an apartment in a new building

Real estate on the primary and secondary markets differs not only in the year of construction, but also in the risks involved in the purchase. Purchasing housing from a good developer significantly reduces these risks, but choosing one is not so easy.

How to choose the right apartment in a new building and what to pay attention to:

Developer reputation.
Construction terms according to the contract.
Construction company documents.
Promotions and discounts from the developer.

Note: first you need to decide in which area and what kind of apartment you need. Real estate in the city center is usually more expensive than that sold on the outskirts. Realtors can find suitable housing, but you can search on your own.

Developer

The first and most important thing when choosing an apartment is the reputation of the developer. In every city there are construction companies that everyone knows about, and they have been working for a long time. If an organization has been building high-rise buildings for more than five years and there are few negative reviews about it, and there are friends who bought real estate from it, it is worth paying attention to this company.

There is also a minus: “old-timer” developers with a good established reputation often sell real estate at inflated prices compared to those who have been working recently.

Before choosing an apartment to buy from a specific company, it is recommended to study reviews about it. The responses on the organization’s page are uninformative and often custom-made. It is better to look for reviews on other Internet resources. If there are none at all, that’s not bad: as a rule, people write negative reviews much more willingly than positive ones. The absence of negative reviews on several resources indirectly indicates the integrity of the company.

Advice: it is advisable to interview friends who have purchased real estate in new buildings. They can tell without embellishment all the pros and cons of the developer and the housing itself. You can also check the company through SudAct to see if it participated in legal proceedings and what the matter was. To check, just enter the name of the organization in the search bar.

Elena Plokhuta

Lawyer, website author (Civil law, 7 years of experience)

Construction time

Construction time is an important factor. If construction is only at the excavation stage, and the apartment is needed urgently, this option will not work. It is better to choose real estate at the final stage of construction, but it will also cost more.

The best option for those who want to save money is to purchase housing under an assignment of claim, when construction has already been completed, but the house has not yet been put into operation. Once entered, it will cost more. An assignment agreement is usually concluded if a person bought an apartment under a shared participation agreement at an early stage of construction, but later changed his mind about living there and decided to sell. This is how the replacement of shareholders under DDU takes place.

Important! Construction periods are always specified in the contract. If the developer violates them, according to Art. 6 Federal Law dated December 30, 2004 No. 214-FZ, the equity holder has the right to recover from him a penalty in the amount of 1/100 of the refinancing rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation of the contract value for each day of delay.

Documentation

Before purchasing an apartment from a developer, you need to make sure that he has all the documents:

building permit;
design documentation;
project declaration;
lease agreement for the land plot on which construction is being carried out. Or an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate confirming ownership;
project declaration;
state registration certificate;
constituent documents;
SRO approval, license;
an agreement with an insurance company that insures the developer’s liability to shareholders.

It would also be useful to study the draft agreement under which equity holders purchase real estate.

Promotions and discounts

In the summer there is traditionally a lull in the construction industry, and at this moment you can buy an apartment in a new building with a good discount - up to 15% of the full cost. Developers often organize promotions before the holidays.

Advice: if you want to save money, you should pay attention to new buildings in microdistricts that are just beginning to be built up. Apartments there are usually sold cheaper, but they are not located in the city center.

Elena Plokhuta

Lawyer, website author (Civil law, 7 years of experience)

Take the survey and a lawyer will tell you for free how to avoid mistakes in an apartment purchase and sale transaction in your case

St. Petersburg new buildings

A considerable amount of modern housing has recently been built in St. Petersburg. Although the choice is huge, such a purchase must be approached with all seriousness and responsibility. To avoid joining the list of victims of fraud, first make inquiries about the developer company and consult with a competent lawyer. So, let's find out how to choose an apartment in a new building in St. Petersburg.

Which area are you interested in? Consider the fact that an apartment in a finished building will cost much more than one in a housing under construction. Therefore, if urgent entry is not important for you and you can wait, it is worth considering options in houses under construction.
The price is greatly influenced by the distance of housing from St. Petersburg, the type of building being built, as well as the panoramic view. You should understand that if you want to see the Gulf of Finland, Nevsky Prospekt or other equally famous St. Petersburg attractions outside your windows, you will have to fork out the cash. An apartment in a new economy class panel building will cost much less.
What type of houses are being built in the area you have chosen? You can find out this information by contacting a real estate agency. When familiarizing yourself with the proposed options, take your time and analyze the information you receive.
It wouldn’t hurt to make inquiries about the developer company, study the documentation and reviews. It is best to go to a construction site to be able to evaluate the area, infrastructure, and surrounding area. If everything suits you, take a lawyer with you and head to the developer.
Discuss with the managers the layout of the apartment, the view from the window, the deadlines for delivery and collection of keys. Look at 2-3 options. It is advisable to take a couple of days to weigh and think about everything again, however, if housing is in short supply, a decision will need to be made as quickly as possible.
When buying an apartment for cash, do not forget to negotiate a discount. It can range from 1 to 5 percent of the total cost, which, you see, is quite good, considering the weight of the purchase. If you are planning to purchase a home with a mortgage, you will need to study the nuances of lending.

How to choose an apartment on the secondary market?

Purchasing secondary real estate is more risky: there is always a chance of “running into” an apartment with collateral or disputed housing, which may suddenly have heirs. And if everything is legally more or less clear with responsible developers, then finding a decent home seller on the secondary market is more difficult.

What to look for when choosing an apartment:

Seller's documents.
Furniture.

Note: it is now almost impossible to buy secondary housing from the owner: realtors post advertisements everywhere. And not all of them work well, and they charge about 100,000 rubles for services. If you want to save money, you should look for housing through Cyan by checking the box in the parameters - “Only from owners.”

Seller's documents

The seller must provide a recent extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate (no more than one month), a passport, as well as a document confirming the basis for the emergence of ownership rights: an old purchase and sale agreement, exchange, certificate of inheritance, deed of gift. If a third party sells the property instead, you will need a notarized power of attorney (Article 185.1 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

A technical passport is also required. By studying it, you can find out whether redevelopment was carried out. If it was, you will need documents from the BTI. It is better not to buy an apartment with unauthorized redevelopment or reconstruction; then you will have to legalize it yourself.

When entering into a transaction, the seller must provide an extract from the house register, which will indicate whether there are registered citizens in the living space. He can confirm the absence of debts for utility services with a certificate from the HOA or management company.

Furniture

In advertisements, photographs of apartments are usually published with furniture in order to attract more potential buyers. In reality, after the display and agreement with the buyer, the seller can pick it up along with the equipment. If you want to move in and live right away, this point should be clarified in advance. If the owner says that he will take everything, this is a reason for a little bargaining.

Advice: from my own experience of working with real estate, I can say that furniture plays a role only when buying apartments with designer renovations, where a one-room apartment can cost 10,000,000 rubles. Prices for standard housing with furniture are always higher than without it. For example, a person can sell an apartment with furniture for 3,000,000 rubles, and nearby similar housing without it will cost 2,500,000 rubles. The actual cost of any sofas and armchairs in ordinary apartments rarely exceeds 100,000 rubles. taking into account wear and tear, and new owners in 90% of cases throw it away. To save money, it’s easier to buy a “bare” living space, and for the difference of 500,000 rubles, as in the example, furnish it yourself with everything new.

Elena Plokhuta

Lawyer, website author (Civil law, 7 years of experience)

Condition of the house

Apartment buildings built before 2000 are included in the capital repair program. You can check whether it is planned in the near future on the Housing and Communal Services Reform website. You can also get other information there:

whether the house is considered unsafe, when it was put into operation, how many owners there are in it.

Everything is more complicated with Soviet-built houses. According to GOST, the service life of utility networks without major repairs is 25 years, but it is often violated. If there are cracks on the facades or in the entrances, condensation in the corners of the rooms, iron brackets are installed to “support” the walls, you should refuse the purchase.

How to return 13 percent from the purchase of an apartment? Step-by-step instruction

What documents are needed to purchase an apartment in a new building, on the secondary market?

Apartment dimensions

The opinion that the larger the apartment, the better, is incorrect. The larger the apartment, the more taxes you will have to pay and the more expensive utilities will cost. As a result, housing must be chosen according to needs.

1-room apartment

A one-room apartment is suitable for singles, whether students or elderly people. Under certain conditions, such housing will become an excellent “nest” for newlyweds, but only for a while, until the birth of children.

2-room apartment

A two-room apartment is the best choice for families with one or two children. There is a place for mom and dad and for children. At the same time, the total area is still compact enough so as not to overpay.

3-room apartment

Such apartments are best suited for large families with many children and other similar situations. There is a lot of space for everyone, but you need to take into account the increased rent and taxes.

4 or more rooms

This housing is already for really large families who prefer to live together, with grandparents. There is a lot of space, but you will have to pay even more.

General criteria

There are also general criteria that will help you understand how and where it is better to look for an apartment to buy:

area and infrastructure;
layout;
materials for construction;
floor;
elevators;
communications;
price;
neighbours;
finishing.

These criteria are important both when purchasing secondary and primary real estate.

Infrastructure and area

It is more logical to look for an apartment near work, school or kindergarten. If you cannot find suitable housing in a certain area within walking distance from them, you can look at real estate further away. The main thing is that you don’t have to travel too long or have transfers. It is better to plan the public transport route in advance.

It’s good if there are shops near your house, but you need to pay attention to their opening hours. It happens that they are open only until 19-20.00, and those who come home late from work may find this mode inconvenient.

If there is a 24-hour shopping center nearby, this is a minus for those looking for housing in a quiet area. There will be no silence there: during the day hundreds of people go shopping in the shopping center, and at night the areas near them can be “occupied” by young people in cars and with loud music.

For those who like to save money, areas with newly developing infrastructure are suitable. Housing there is sold 15-30% cheaper than in places where there are already schools, shops, kindergartens, clinics and private clinics. But it all depends on the material from which the house is built:

for example, a two-room Khrushchev apartment in a developed area will cost about the same as a new two-room apartment in a less developed area.

Layout

Planning is one of the important points. In new buildings, apartments are built mostly without walk-through rooms. The old ones have them. This is inconvenient if the family is large or guests often come.

Now there are several types of layouts:

European planning. All rooms are isolated, but there is no partition between the kitchen and living room. The advantage of this solution is in a large space, the disadvantage is the possible odors during cooking. But for many this is not critical.
Free. There are no walls at all in the apartment. The owner can plan the location of the premises as he wishes. They are sold 5-10% cheaper than the average market value and only in new houses. They can also be found on the secondary market, if a person bought a home from a developer and then decided to sell.
Highlet - housing with ceilings from 3.2 m. This height visually increases the space and is suitable for implementing design projects.
Linear. All rooms are isolated, located one after another along the corridor.

There are also rare-format housing: penthouses with open terraces, two-level apartments, bay windows, and windows in the bathrooms. Buyers should prepare a considerable amount for the design of the project: apartments with unique layouts are more expensive to finish than standard ones.

Material for construction

Comfort and sound permeability largely depend on the type of house. Currently the market is dominated by:

Panel. Sound insulation is poor, they are inexpensive. There are many load-bearing walls, it is difficult to remodel. If there are seams between the slabs, it will be cool in winter.
Monolithic. They are built according to individual projects and are more expensive than panel or brick ones. Ceilings are usually high and energy efficient. Sound insulation is much better than in panel or brick ones.
Brick. Sound insulation is at an average level. The average price is higher than for panel ones, but lower than for monolithic ones. Good energy efficiency. Brick houses are practically not built now; they are easier to find on the secondary market.

Note! If the amount to buy an apartment is limited, you can buy it in a panel house, and then soundproof it. It will cost about 100,000-200,000 rubles. depending on the technology and area of housing.

Finishing

Luxury housing from the developer is usually built on a turnkey basis, and materials of average quality are used for finishing. Almost every company tries to save money. If the contract specifies one thing, and upon delivery it turns out that the repairs were done poorly, this is a reason to demand the fulfillment of obligations from the developer through the court.

Many companies furnish apartments on a turnkey basis and according to their own design projects. Such real estate is as expensive as possible. The quality is not bad, but buyers often have to fix defects on their own.

Standard apartments without pretensions to the “elite” are sold with an average renovation. Plumbing fixtures are usually the cheapest, but they can be used for a while.

You can buy housing with a rough finish, with a concrete floor and bare walls. This gives you space to implement your own design solutions, just like buying an apartment with a fine finish, where everything is already prepared for wallpapering, painting, laying laminate, etc. Real estate with a rough finish is always cheaper.

Floor

Apartments on the first floors are cheaper than on the middle floors. But life in them is constantly accompanied by noise from the entrance and curious people who like to look into the windows from the street.

The last floors are also cheaper than the middle ones.

Advantages and disadvantages

picturesque view if the windows face the street

frequent roof leaks, which is typical for old houses. It floods the top floors. If the house is new, this should not be a problem.

The elevator in the house may break down, and then it will be difficult to climb the stairs to the top floor, especially for parents with small children. You will have to wait for the elevator to be repaired, and this often takes several days.

Neighbours

In a house under construction, for obvious reasons, it will not be possible to find out about the neighbors. If the house is partially occupied, you can get to know them so that you get an impression of who you will live next to.

If real estate is purchased on the secondary market, you can ask the seller about the neighbors. But he is unlikely to tell the truth. Even if a conflicting neighbor lives nearby, the seller will remain silent about it: he needs to sell the house.

Communications

When buying a home in a new building, all communications are new, and the likelihood of an accident is negligible. If the living space is purchased resale, it is worth asking the owner when the batteries and pipes were changed. If it's recent and he can provide receipts from contractors, that's good.

If the communications are old, you should prepare for the fact that during a major overhaul you will have to change them. These are additional costs.

Important! The buyer should also ask the seller about the availability of meters. If they are not there, they must be installed after purchase, otherwise charges for electricity and water supply will be charged at average rates. It is always more expensive than using metering devices. Also, meters must be verified in a timely manner, and each has its own expiration date.

Elevator

Old buildings have standard elevators, usually one for each entrance. This is inconvenient when moving: you will have to bring and transport a minimum of things. If the house has both a passenger and freight elevator, this is a plus.

Price

If an apartment is sold on the secondary market at too low a price, the buyer should be wary. There is a possibility that they are trying to get rid of it faster. Before concluding a contract, it is better to check it:

the owner will not talk about legal problems with her.

It is more profitable to buy an apartment from a developer at the initial stage of construction. With the passage of each stage the price will increase. Ready-made housing is the most expensive after it is put into operation. If you buy living space in a house under construction, this will save up to 30% of the cost of the finished apartment.

Are you tired of reading? We’ll tell you over the phone and answer your questions.

Checking and inspection of real estate before purchase

Carefully check the apartment on the secondary or primary market, and always from a legal point of view. Careless realtors try to complete the deal as quickly as possible, so that various flaws do not appear before the deal is closed, so there is no need to rush.

Important criteria when choosing a residential property are the following:

Location, infrastructure development.
Price.
Layout, number of floors.

What should you pay attention to when purchasing? When choosing an apartment, look at the following:

Dear readers! We cover standard methods for solving legal problems, but your case may be unique. We will help you find a solution to your problem for free

— simply call our legal consultant at:

+7 (495) 128-73-40 (Moscow)

+7 (812) 603-71-55 (Saint Petersburg)

8 (800) 302-33-75 (free call within Russia)

It's fast and free ! You can also quickly get an answer through the consultant form on the website.

Whoever sells should only be the owner. Not an acquaintance, not a matchmaker, not “just asked to show you.” Only the owner and be sure to check the availability of title documents. Please note that there may be several owners, so you will have to talk to them all.
What is the condition of the apartment: was a major renovation done and when, were the communications changed, what is the condition of the house itself, the roof, the entrance.
Who are your likely neighbors?
Which management company, since the condition of the house, the quality and timeliness of the work depend on this.

Such a person as a realtor often creates a stir around the apartment: “an excellent option, it’s time to look, this is the best thing your money can buy, I would like to live here myself.” Do not pay attention to this, moreover, the more the object is praised, the greater the likelihood that there is something to hide.

Now let's look at everything in more detail.

Which floor should I choose?

Many people do not want to buy an apartment on the ground floor because of the noise, and on the top floor because the roof may leak, and then the apartment itself will have to be repaired.

The disadvantages of an apartment on the ground floor include:

Old houses smell like sewage.
Noisy, especially if the windows face the courtyard.
No balcony.
You will have to install protective grilles on the windows.

On the plus side, you are not afraid of a non-working elevator. If there is a small child in the family, this option is ideal - you won’t have to carry the stroller up several flights of stairs.

Also, apartments on the ground floor are cheaper; on average, you can save 10% of the cost of housing.

As for apartments on the top floors, the advantages here are:

There are no upstairs neighbors, no one running overhead, no noise.
Nice view from the window.
There is no need to put bars on the windows.
There is a balcony/loggia, maybe even two.

The disadvantages include the following:

The breakdown of the elevator will be noticeable, especially if there are small children.
Older houses may have low water pressure.
If the roof leaks, then it can also have a negative impact on the ceiling of the apartment.

Condition of the apartment

Carefully, slowly and preferably with a specialist, check the following:

Plumbing.
Wiring.
The condition of the walls near the windows - if there is mold, it means the apartment is damp during the cold season.
The reliability of the balcony, whether it is glazed or not.
Availability of meters for water, gas, electricity, great if there is a meter for heat.
Condition of windows and entrance doors.
What remains in the apartment.
Was the apartment available for rent? If yes, then you definitely need to replace the locks on the front door in the future.

Future neighbors

Be sure to find out who your future neighbors are. The grandmothers at the entrance will tell you about this best - they know everything about everyone and will enlighten you in detail about this. The owner, and especially the realtor, is unlikely to honestly admit that behind the wall live alcohol addicts or those who like to start noisy showdowns.

Management Company

The quality of work of the management company is indicated by the following:

Is the entrance itself and the surrounding area clean?
The condition of the house - are there any emergency areas, are ongoing repairs being carried out.

It would be a good idea to find out where the company is located and how long it has been “running” this house.

How to check an apartment?

If the transaction is accompanied by a lawyer, he should do the verification. When contacting a realtor, everything depends on the terms of the contract: if the legal support service is not specified there, the realtor will not be legally responsible for the purity of the transaction.

You can check the housing yourself through the Rosreestr service. To do this, just indicate the address of the apartment and create a request. If it is pledged to the bank, the information will be displayed on the screen.

Legal advice: it is better for the buyer to order an extended extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate in electronic form. There will be information about the owner and restrictions. It will cost 350 rubles. Information in the electronic service is updated extremely rarely, and the information available at the time of purchase may not be relevant. For example, if updates were made on the 24th, the apartment was seized on the 25th, and it was put up for sale on the 26th, most likely the buyer will not find out about the restrictions by requesting information online. As for the extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate, it will immediately contain up-to-date information.

Apartment renovation

If an apartment is purchased from a developer, then most often the repairs are either rough or light, cosmetic. Some companies offer to immediately sell housing fully furnished and overhauled, but such offers are not in great demand due to the very inflated price. You can do the same thing much cheaper by ordering separate repairs from another company.

Rough finish

It is with this kind of renovation that apartments from developers are the cheapest. There is nothing here: bare walls and concrete floor. Sometimes windows are installed, but this is also not necessary. An ideal option for those who want to do everything themselves.

Clean renovation from the developer

This is an apartment from a developer, in which there is nothing except maybe a bathroom and toilet. The walls are painted or have cheap wallpaper pasted on them, and so on. A very simple and cheap repair option. You can already live in such an apartment if there is nowhere else, but it still requires serious investments to bring it to the desired condition.

Fully ready to move in renovation

Such repairs are more common in apartments that are sold on the secondary market. It is not always really sufficient for a comfortable stay, but in general, everything that is needed has been done. Suitable for those people who do not want or do not have the opportunity to invest in renovations after purchasing an apartment.

Primary and secondary housing: advantages and disadvantages

If the buyer has not yet decided where to buy an apartment - on the secondary market or from the developer - it is worth familiarizing yourself with the advantages and disadvantages of both options:

In a new building

Low cost: up to 30-40% cheaper than finished housing

Large selection of apartments with different designs and layouts

Some developers provide installment plans

The use of modern technologies during construction, which has a positive effect on comfort in the future

Communication guarantee (but not always given)

Some companies provide clients with the opportunity to order individual layouts

Adequate neighbors: the likelihood of neighbors with alcoholics or drug addicts in a new building is significantly lower than in old houses

You will have to wait until construction is completed and the house is put into operation to move in.

High risks: construction may be “frozen”, and you will have to wait for resumption, or go to court

If the apartment is self-finishing, this entails additional repair costs. You won’t be able to buy and move in right away.

Developers often fail to fulfill their contractual obligations.

All apartment owners are moving to new houses, and for neighbors, renovations can take several years

On the secondary market

Most often, secondary housing is sold renovated. You can buy and move

Sellers are usually willing to bargain

Developed infrastructure. Most new buildings in new neighborhoods cannot boast of this

Apartments are cheaper than in new buildings

Hidden defects in repairs and communications almost always appear if the seller is silent about them

If you buy an apartment in Stalin or Khrushchev, the chance of living next to antisocial individuals is very high

There may be an unexpected appearance of other heirs if the seller inherited the property

Outdated design/renovation

Material of the house, its appearance and interior repairs

The material from which the house is made is also of great importance. There are always two main options: brick and panel houses. There are other varieties, but they are much less common.

Brick

A properly made brick house has significantly better heat retention, which means that it will be much more comfortable in winter. In addition, brick looks better visually.

Panel

Apartments in panel houses, as a rule, are cheaper than in brick houses, but they usually have worse heat retention. Visually, they can also look good if they are made well.

Exterior of the house

The main thing in appearance is the absence of distinct problems: cracks, pieces of fallen brick and other similar damage. In second place is appearance. How beautiful the house looks. This, in fact, is not very important, but, other things being equal, it can become a decisive factor.

Internal repairs and equipment

What's more important is how the house looks from the inside. A clean entrance, no obscene signs, all the lights on, a working elevator - a good sign. The better the house looks from the inside, the better. Often, large houses even have their own concierge, so there will definitely be no strangers here.

Elevator

If the buyer plans to purchase an apartment on the upper floors (from the third and above), it is important to check the elevator, its size and functionality. New buildings often have two elevators at once, one of which is small, passenger, and the second large, freight. The second one is especially useful when moving or buying new furniture.

It is necessary to check what the elevator looks like, find out if they are working normally, how often they are undergoing repairs, and so on. You need to clarify all this first of all with the seller, but it is advisable to double-check the data by interviewing your neighbors.

Lawyer's answers to popular questions

Which houses are better to buy an apartment in?

To a large extent, it all depends on the amount that the buyer is willing to pay for the property. If you have enough money, you should pay attention to new monolithic houses.

Which apartments sell best?

If we talk about the secondary market, one-room apartments and studios are in greatest demand. The hardest thing to sell is three- to five-room luxury housing with designer renovations: its cost is several times higher than the standard one, and not everyone can buy it.

Which apartments are better not to buy?

You should be wary of real estate inherited or purchased with capital. In the latter case, the seller is legally obliged to allocate shares to all family members. Often this requirement is not met, and in the event of a sale, the transaction may be challenged by the guardianship authority, the Pension Fund, the prosecutor's office, the spouse or child upon reaching

How to choose an apartment to buy on the resale market and not run into scammers?

First of all, you need to check the documents and independently order an extract from the Unified State Register. Fraudsters usually offer housing at a price significantly lower than the market price, and act on behalf of the owners using powers of attorney. They may be fake.

I want to buy a home, there are two options. The first is in a good area at a low cost with renovations, but with a mortgage. Second - the area is not very good, the renovation is the same, but without encumbrances. Which apartment should I choose?

In the first case, the seller must pay off the mortgage in order for the bank to remove the encumbrances. If he does not have money, the buyer can pay a deposit equal to the amount owed. The encumbrance is removed within three working days. Documents for registering the transfer of ownership can be submitted immediately after the conclusion of the contract. There are risks for the buyer, but they are minimal. If the buyer is not satisfied with this scheme, it is better to resort to the second option. But the first time the transaction is supported by a competent lawyer, all risks are minimized.

Which floor is better

There is no clear opinion on which floor the apartment is best on. Most often, they choose housing on approximately the middle floors if we consider buying housing in a nine-story building: from 3 to 7. They are also usually the most expensive, which is the main disadvantage.

First floor

Housing on the ground floor is usually cheaper than housing on any other floor. And this is not without reason. There is a lot of noise from the street, crowds of people who, out of curiosity, can look into the windows, and so on. Separately, basements need to be taken into account. It’s good if the house is new and there are no problems with the basement.

If the house is old, then there may be high humidity in the basement, which leads to the appearance of fungus and mold in the apartment. You should also take into account various insects migrating from the basement to the apartment or even rats and mice.

But the first floor is convenient because a broken or inoperative elevator does not pose any particular threat. It's simply not needed.

Middle floors

The most popular choice. At the same time, a good view and a relatively low noise level. But you need to take into account the noise from neighbors above, below, on the side, and so on. In addition, there is a problem with the elevator. If it often does not work, then climbing on foot, for example, to the seventh floor is quite difficult. As mentioned above, such apartments are usually about 10-15% more expensive than those on the first or last floor.

Top floor

A very controversial option, which largely depends on the house itself. If the house is new, and there is also an attic on top, then this is an excellent option. The new roof will not leak, and the attic can gradually be privatized, making the apartment even larger and more comfortable.

At the same time, if the windows overlook the forest, for example, the view will be very picturesque. No one will look into the windows and noise from the street will be minimal. In addition, there are no problems with noisy neighbors upstairs. They don't exist.

Among the shortcomings, a critical problem with the elevator should be noted. If it doesn’t work, then it’s difficult to even get to the 9th floor, let alone the 12th, 14th, 16th, and so on floors. Also sometimes there are problems with weak water pressure or poor heating.

How to choose the area in which it is better to buy an apartment?

The right choice will allow you to feel comfortable and safe in everyday life. Therefore, the procedure for choosing an apartment also includes assessing a number of criteria that allow you to determine that you also got a good area.

Transport interchange. At any time you may need to use public transport services, even if you have your own car. If there is none, this question becomes even more relevant. Estimate the distance from your home to the nearest transport stop that you frequently use. It is also important whether you will have to travel with transfers and how much time you will need to spend on the road. It is necessary to analyze all this from the point of view of the convenience of all members of your family;
Proximity of social facilities. These include hospitals, educational, preschool, developmental institutions, centers, etc. It is advisable that all these facilities be close to your home;
Infrastructure. It is very convenient when in your area you don’t have to go far to a store, cafe, take a long time to get to a bank, cinema, pharmacy, post office, travel to the other end of the city to a fitness club, swimming pool or other sports or shopping and entertainment institutions;
Security level. Almost every city has disadvantaged areas that are attractive to antisocial segments of the population. In these areas there is a higher crime rate, therefore, living in such a place is unsafe. Advice from experts on how to choose the right apartment from this point of view is to familiarize yourself with the relevant statistics, compare crime rates for a certain period;
Ecology. The safety of living in a certain area also depends on it. The proximity of busy highways and industrial facilities suggests that the air in this area can hardly be called environmentally friendly. It is advisable to choose a property located at a distance of at least 500 m from them. It is worth paying attention to areas located near parks, green areas, and reservoirs. It is also recommended to familiarize yourself with the data on the level of radiation and water quality in the selected area, and make sure that these indicators correspond to the norm;
Nature, places of rest, walks. The presence of public gardens, green areas, parks, alleys, and playgrounds nearby testifies in favor of your choice;
Prospects for the development of the area in the coming years. Evaluate what changes are planned for it in the near future in order to understand which building to choose an apartment in and in which area it should be located. The positive ones include the planned landscaping, the opening of new social facilities, and the improvement of infrastructure. The future opening of new industrial facilities, major highways, crowded places, and landfills can be regarded as negative prospects.

Choosing an apartment finish

When thinking about how to choose an apartment in a new building, take care of the upcoming renovation. The fact is that the purchase budget will directly depend on what kind of housing you prefer - with finishing or not. This affects the amount of work, time, and finances. Fortunately, the modern market offers different finishing options to suit every budget and taste, and each has its own advantages.

The apartment can be without finishing at all or with rough finishing, pre-finishing, finishing, turnkey and designer.

The most popular among the population is housing without finishing. Externally, it is just a concrete box with provided openings for windows and doors. You won’t be able to move into such an apartment right away, both on the primary and secondary markets, but it will cost less.

If you don’t want to bother with dirty work, you can purchase housing with a rough finish. In such an apartment, work has been partially leveled on the floor, walls and ceilings, some communications have been installed, and water supply meters have been installed.

The apartment is pre-finished and ready for finishing work. It already has electricity, a bathroom is equipped, sockets and switches are installed. In the pre-finish version of the whitebox format, wallpaper can be hung for painting and interior doors can be installed.

Do you want to move into your apartment right away and don’t want to deal with renovations? In this case, your option is a fully finished apartment or a turnkey renovation. In the case of an apartment in a new building, the owner has a choice between several renovation styles. When choosing a “secondary” one, you just have to trust the taste of the previous owners.

If you choose an apartment with designer decoration, you will have to work closely with a special bureau that develops individual projects. In these cases, specialists take into account the wishes of the owner, budget and many other factors. The owner does not have to endure noise or dust; he just needs to choose the appropriate option, and qualified employees will do the rest.

Key criteria for purchasing a home

In addition to the important aspects already discussed, the following points need to be taken into account:

Price. It will largely depend on the area, floor, layout, area, number of rooms, infrastructure development, ecology, etc. It is important to find an option with the optimal ratio of price and all these parameters;
Planning and redevelopment. The location and size of the premises plays a significant role in ensuring comfort and coziness. In this sense, housing in new buildings has an advantage - in many of them the owner can receive a “box”, and then himself distribute the placement of rooms and other premises in it. It is possible to make changes to the layout in secondary housing, but the redevelopment must be legalized and included in the technical passport. Otherwise, you may receive a fine;
Adjacent territory. You should evaluate its grooming, infrastructure, cleanliness, etc.;
Condition of the house. It is worth finding out the year it was built, checking whether it is in emergency condition, assessing the condition of the entrance (cleanliness, cleanliness, humidity, etc.) and the elevator. Ask about the condition of the general building communications;
Neighbours. After the purchase, a dysfunctional neighborhood may become an unpleasant surprise, so it would be a good idea to immediately get to know your potential neighbors, at least from below, above, or from your future floor;
The condition of the housing itself. First of all, pay attention to the state of communications. Examine the ceiling, walls, floor - how smooth they are, whether there are any cracks, mold, mildew, streaks, moisture. It’s up to you to choose whether the apartment renovation should be major or cosmetic. But even if you come across the second option, this is not a sign that the housing is in poor condition. Many people simply make it more or less presentable before selling it, leaving the opportunity for future owners to make repairs to their taste.

Time to buy an apartment

It is very important to choose the right time to make a transaction in order to significantly save money. Many buyers are willing to take a risk and purchase a new building at the foundation pit stage, which allows them to buy an apartment 30% cheaper. Buying such an apartment, unfortunately, is almost always a lottery; no big names of developers guarantee problems in the future.

A fairly large number of buyers prefer not to take risks at all, and choose apartments in already completed new buildings. But ready-made apartments, especially with finishing from the developer, are already an order of magnitude more expensive. In addition, at this stage there are much fewer options to choose from, since those who take the risk most often take apart the best apartments.

Where to start buying a secondary home?

If, in the case of purchasing a primary property, the client turns to a developer, then the purchase of a secondary property begins with searching for advertisements for the sale of housing. The question arises: is it worth contacting a private real estate agency acting as an intermediary between the seller and the buyer, or does it make sense to deal directly with the owner?

Such companies provide the following services:

Search for suitable housing according to the parameters specified by the customer;
Organization of inspection of optimal options;
Providing advice to the client on questions of which apartment to choose, how to properly complete the transaction;
Checking whether the seller has the required package of documents for ownership;
Preparation of the contract;
Control of settlement when completing a transaction;
Assistance in registering it in the State Register.

All these manipulations can be carried out without the participation of an intermediary. The most important thing that any buyer fears is being deceived by scammers and, as a result, losing a considerable amount of money. The real estate agency does not protect against this. In words, agents talk about responsibility, but the contract does not stipulate any guarantees or financial responsibility.

In fact, the intermediary does the following work:

Finds in its database offers that are suitable for a potential buyer;
Arranges with sellers to view housing, accompanies the buyer to the required addresses;
Takes a package of necessary documents from the seller;
Makes a request to the appropriate authorities to inspect the property;
Hands over all documents to a lawyer who draws up a purchase and sale agreement and passes it on to the parties to the transaction through a realtor;
Accompanies them to the bank to complete the settlement;
Present at the signing of the contract;
Submits documents to the state registrar, and after registration, the buyer is given a copy of the contract.

There is no urgent need for the presence of a realtor during all these manipulations. Important legal issues should be entrusted to a specialist in this field - a notary. Bank employees help you complete the payment process. Thus, it is important to find a reliable, experienced notary and a good reliable bank. Another point is checking real estate and documents. These issues can also be dealt with without an agent, and more on that a little later.

As for how to choose an apartment, how to choose an area, number of floors, location, etc. - these are the aspects that were discussed above.

Choosing an apartment layout

If you have not thought about the future layout of the apartment, then you should do so immediately. This will allow you to narrow your search and get a clearer idea of the desired living space. What do modern developers offer on the real estate market? The choice is varied, from small studios to huge penthouses. You just have to settle on what fits your specific criteria.

Layouts are divided into three main types: closed, open and partially closed. Closed layouts are familiar to almost everyone who lived in old-style apartments, where each room is isolated from the rest. Open floor plans do not have partitions or insulation between rooms. Partially closed layouts have both completely isolated rooms and partially combined ones.

The following types of layouts are popular:

Europlanning . Its difference from the traditional one is the absence of partitions between the kitchen and living room. This is done to expand the space, as in studios and more spacious apartments in order to save living space.
Open plan . There are no interior walls in such an apartment at all, there is only a single space that you can arrange to your taste. Reinforced concrete pylons are used as supporting structures. In such an apartment you will face additional expenses for the construction of partitions.
Highflet . The ceilings in such apartments reach a height of 3.2 m, which allows you to visually increase the space and create a custom design project.
Housing of a rare format . An option for those who want to get unusual housing. The highlight of such an apartment can be panoramic windows, bay windows, open terraces on the upper floors, windows in the bathroom, etc.

The layout can be linear (rooms are located one after another along the corridor), hinged (some of the windows in the apartment face the opposite side of the house) and corner.

There may also be differences in layout in terms of functionality. Thus, in some apartments the area of bathrooms, balconies or loggias is increased, additional storage rooms, dressing rooms, niches for chests of drawers and cabinets are installed. When thinking about how to choose an apartment, consider what kind of layout you would like to get and what criteria are most important to you.

In which house is it better to buy an apartment, brick or panel?

We’ve decided on the area, now let’s move on to choosing an apartment, but we need a good apartment.

Perhaps there won’t be much of a difference inside, but on the outside, panel houses lose their appearance much earlier, and their service life is shorter.

For clarity, see the photo below.

Brick or monolithic houses 10-15 years old look much better than 3-year-old panels.

In the future, if you want to sell an apartment, it will be easier to do this in a brick house.

In addition , a common problem with panel houses is freezing of the seams, and, accordingly, the walls of the apartments. Audibility also leaves much to be desired, but if the area is large, then you can spend money and soundproof the rooms where you relax. The comfort of your stay in such houses will directly depend on the quality of work of the management company.

It’s worth buying an apartment in an old panel house only if you have very little money. Repairs to it will never pay off, and it is unlikely to be sold at a higher price.

Brick houses also have disadvantages - they shrink in the first couple of years. Think for yourself how critical this is for your repair. If the house has already stood for a couple of years, then you don’t have to worry about this.

Monolithic houses are the quietest when all the renovations are done, but while they are doing it you will hear the hammer drill even after several floors. Again, the service life is much longer compared to sockets.

As for communications , in various Khrushchev buildings everything has already rotted, and if it has not yet been replaced, then there is a possibility that it will change under your watch. And the layouts of such apartments are not the best. An exception can be considered old, almost pre-revolutionary, brick houses (featuring high ceilings, spacious rooms), but they are usually located in the central area of the city and are expensive.

Apartment location

The location of the apartment relative to the cardinal directions is a parameter that many people neglect, which they later regret because:

One-piece apartments always have an advantage over linear apartments, the windows of which face one side. With this configuration, you will always have the opportunity to quickly ventilate the apartment and achieve a constant flow of air from the street. You also have more options to choose a place for a nursery or bedroom, hiding from the morning sun and from the busy street outside the window.
Housing with windows facing east or west is considered the most comfortable. On the south side it can be very hot, and on the north side the apartment can be too dark and cold.
The higher the apartment, the more sunlight you receive. On the lower floors, even with a good location relative to the cardinal directions, the sun may not reach you due to dense trees or nearby houses.
Avoid apartments with windows overlooking restaurants, clubs and other drinking establishments.

Potential neighbors

It is very important to ask the seller about the neighbors in advance. This factor is not particularly important in new buildings, since owners there can change quite often, and few people know each other. Among other things, often people who have money for apartments in new buildings are quite adequate. However, this is not necessary.

But if you buy an apartment on the secondary real estate market, then the neighbors may cause quite expected problems: they drink, often have parties, floods, and so on. You need to know this at least in order to try to bargain.

It is also important to interview the neighbors themselves, if possible. They can tell you what the seller may not be talking about.

Example: The electricity in the house is often cut off, and the elevator only works one day a month. The seller may remain silent about this, even if the visit to the property falls on a day when there is no light and/or the elevator is not working. You can always make an excuse by saying that this is a temporary phenomenon and, in general, he sees this for the first time during his entire stay in the apartment. But the neighbors most likely will not hide such information.

Choosing housing is a very important procedure, on which further comfortable living largely depends. At a free consultation, experienced lawyers will tell you what else you need to pay attention to. In addition, they can accompany the entire purchase and sale transaction, thereby reducing the likelihood of problems to a minimum.

FREE CONSULTATIONS are available for you! If you want to solve exactly your problem, then

describe your situation to a lawyer in an online chat;
write a question in the form below;
call Moscow and Moscow region
call St. Petersburg and region

Save or share the link on social networks

(
1 ratings, average: 5.00 out of 5)
Author of the article

Natalya Fomicheva

Website expert lawyer. 10 years of experience. Inheritance matters. Family disputes. Housing and land law.

Ask a question Author's rating

Articles written

513

- FREE for a lawyer!

Write your question, our lawyer will prepare an answer for FREE and call you back in 5 minutes.

By submitting data you agree to the Consent to PD processing, PD Processing Policy and User Agreement

Useful information on the topic

Agreement for the purchase and sale of an apartment using a mortgage and credit funds

The apartment purchase and sale agreement is the main document when concluding a transaction. Especially…

Agreement for the purchase and sale of an apartment with minor children

Buying real estate is a responsible step that requires serious preparation and attention...

How to check an apartment for cleanliness before buying it yourself

A transaction involving the alienation of housing for a fee always involves certain risks...

What actions need to be taken after buying an apartment

After concluding a transaction for the purchase and sale of residential premises, it is too early for the buyer to sigh...

Inspection of the apartment before purchase

Buying an apartment is a responsible step that must be taken carefully...

Preliminary agreement for the purchase and sale of an apartment for guardianship

A preliminary purchase and sale agreement (PPSA) is an agreement that is concluded by the parties...