Luxury market rebounds

Top end apartment prices are starting to recover from last year's slump. Last month saw end of year pay-rises for many top managers fuel a leap of 3 to 7 per cent in the luxury and business class sector.

This summer has been seeing unusual activity within the lettings market as the authorities became concerned about the legal status of lease business. Unofficial deals, rental rate understatement for tax inspection, and absence of properly executed documents – these are just a few offences mentioned by the President at his meeting with Yedinaya Rossiya members.

The number of owners of Moscow flats worth more than $1 million has fallen by a third since the beginning of the year, according to report by real estate analytics. The research showed that prior to the crisis there were 289,355 owners of apartments that were valued at more than $1 million. 

The tax authorities have been waging a campaign to draw landlords' rental income out of the shadow economy since 2006. At the time, authorities called upon vigilant neighbours to report suspicious new tenants to the tax police.