Every investor seeks to find a tried and tested territory that still got some free space left. Ukraine is an example of just that. Even in the face of ongoing pandemic, the country remains an attractive place for investments. In 2021, the national economy has good prospects for recovery despite all the challenges. This is something expected even by the reputable international institutions, including the World Bank that has changed its previous forecast of Ukraine’s GDP growth from 3% to 3.8% this year.

It should also be noted that Ukraine's GDP only declined by 4% during the last troubled year, while the forecasts voiced when the first March lockdown hit were much more pessimistic at 10%. For comparison: the world GDP lost 4.3%. At the same time, there were some sectors that even managed to see some growth.

Real estate is one of such markets. This is primarily true for the country’s capital and its satellites, as well as several major regional centers (Dnipro, Lviv, Odesa, Kharkiv). For example, that’s how average square meter price dynamic looked like on Kyiv’s primary housing market from January 2020 to March 2021:



As seen from the graph, even though the overall economic situation has affected the price decrease in some months, the cost per square meter is already higher than that in February last year (and this was the last month before the lockdown). Moreover, as other economic indicators on the real estate market gradually increase, the price increase will only accelerate.

Ukraine opens land market

Opening of the land market is one of the important factors that will contribute to price growth in future. Ukraine’s moratorium on the sale of land is expected to be lifted as early as July 1, 2021. At the same time, some restrictions will remain. For example, foreign investors will not be able to purchase or own agricultural land even together with Ukrainian companies. This restriction can only be lifted by referendum, and none are currently in the works.

However, Ukrainian legislation does not prohibit foreigners from owning apartments or residential houses in Ukraine that come with a land plot. On top of that, international investors can also buy commercial property and land for the construction of business-related facilities.

Ukrainian government seeks to stimulate foreign investment, so there’s a way to receive Ukrainian citizenship for foreign investors making a significant contribution to the national economy (over $100,000). However, purchasing real estate in Ukraine will not be a significant condition for citizenship as it is not seen as a direct investment in legislative terms. But it will sure help, as owning a home still remains an important requirement for obtaining residency rights.

How can a non-resident buy real estate?

The procedure is quite simple as Ukrainian legislation makes almost no difference between non-residents and country citizens when it comes to buying residential property. The transaction is regulated by the contract of sale, the tax does not exceed 1%, and foreign citizens only need:

- a valid passport translated into Ukrainian and certified by a notary;
- taxpayer identification code that takes about a week to obtain.

The law requires a non-resident buyer to be physically present during the transaction. But given that the pandemic and related restrictions have made international travel much harder, it is possible to buy real estate using a power of attorney. In this case, this must be notarized, and in situations where it was made outside of Ukraine, it must have an apostille.

In fact, remote purchases are not that new for Ukrainian market. For example, back in 2017, there was a non-resident who bought an apartment in Kyiv using cryptocurrency. Although the use of cryptocurrency is not regulated by the Ukrainian legislation, the rights of both buyer and seller are still protected by the Law of Ukraine on State Registration of Proprietary Rights to Real Estate and their Encumbrances.

QuattrHouse always picks reliable properties for its clients and allows you to make safe investments on any phase. We provide remote agreement signing services, always adhere to the principle of openness and act in accordance with Ukrainian legislation. Our team provides you with comprehensive property management services that even include renovating the property for your family’s needs or getting rent ready.