Inspecting an apartment before buying in Georgia: a checklist

Updated: November 2026

Before the visit: what to bring and how to prepare

• Come in daylight. If you can, come a second time at another time of day or in different weather.
• Bring a phone with a charger, a torch, a tape measure and a notebook or the printed checklist.
• Ask the seller in advance to open everything: the flat, balcony, storage room, fuse board and meters, and the roof, basement and technical rooms where they can be entered.
• Do not go alone: a second person notices what you miss. If you decide to bring an engineer, bring them to the viewing, not after the deposit.

Questions for the seller: the flat and the building

• Who owns it and who lives there now: the seller, tenants, relatives? Will it be vacated before the deal?
• What repairs and alterations were made: pipes, wiring, windows, moved or removed walls, a balcony joined to a room. Are there documents for them?
• Were there leaks, floods, fire or damp, and what was done afterwards?
• Who manages the building, what building fees are paid and is any work planned?
• Are there disputes with neighbours or other owners?

The building outside, entrance, stairs and lift

• Facade: cracks, flaking, stains, pieces coming away, the state of balconies. Photograph each fault close up and from a distance.
• Entrance: lock or intercom, lighting, cleanliness, smells.
• Stairwell: steps, handrails, cracks in walls and ceiling, signs of damp, light on every floor.
• Lift: does it work, how does it move, do the doors close, is there a plate with the maintenance company's contacts? Ask the seller and neighbours who maintains it and when it was last serviced.

Roof, attic, basement and technical rooms

The Law on Homeowners' Associations lists as common property the load-bearing and facade structures, stairwells, basements, attics, boiler rooms, roofs and lifts, where they are not individually owned (Art. 5(4)). Their condition therefore concerns you, and their costs are shared between the owners.

• Top floor: ceilings and corners under the roof, stains, rings, fresh paint, a smell of damp. Ask when and how the roof was repaired.
• Roof and attic: ask to be shown them if access exists. Look at the covering, drainage and equipment on the roof.
• Basement: is it dry, any water, mould, traces of rodents or insects, how the pipes run and whether anything leaks. Is it locked and who has the keys?

The flat: walls, ceilings, floors, layout

• Walls and ceilings: signs of leaks, mould, blistered wallpaper and plaster, fresh paint in patches. Check corners, behind wardrobes, under window sills and around the bathroom.
• Cracks: photograph with a ruler or coin beside them, and with the date. Whether they are cosmetic is for an engineer to say. Ask the seller whether new ones have appeared.
• Layout: compare the flat with its plan. Have walls been moved, a balcony joined, the bathroom changed? Ask a lawyer and an engineer whether the changes were formalised and could get in the way of the deal.
• Smells: damp, drains, smoke. A strong air freshener or a freshly redone wall can hide the cause; ask what is underneath.

Windows, doors, balcony

• Windows: do they open and close tightly, any gaps, condensation between panes, mould on the reveals?
• Front door and locks: how they work, how many sets of keys and who else has keys.
• Balcony: railing, slab, rust, where water runs off, any unapproved glazing or joining to a room.
• The law names common balconies as part of the building's common property (Art. 5(4)). Ask a lawyer which type this flat's balcony is.

Water, drains, plumbing

• Open every tap, hot and cold. Judge the pressure, the colour of the water, how long hot water takes, and run the kitchen and bathroom together.
• Drains: bath, sink, shower, toilet. Flush several times, listen at the riser, sniff.
• Under sinks, behind the toilet and around the bath: signs of leaks, rusty streaks, damp cupboards. Ask whether the neighbours below were ever flooded.
• Water heater or boiler: type, where it stands, who services it, whether documents and a guarantee exist.
• Water meters: do they exist, where are they, record and photograph the readings. Ask in whose name the account is.

Electrics, gas, heating, ventilation

Wiring and gas equipment need a specialist. Your job is to look, ask and write it down.

• Fuse board: where it is, whether breakers are labelled, any makeshift joints in view, signs of heat or soot. Open it only with the seller's permission.
• Sockets and lights: switch on the light in every room and test sockets with a charger. Show wiring and earthing to an electrician.
• Gas: is gas connected, where are the meter, hob, hose, flue, ventilation and any gas water heater? Who serviced them and are there documents? If you smell gas, leave, do not switch on lights or flames and call the gas emergency service.
• Heating: what heats the flat; switch it on today. Ask for bills from the cold months.
• Electricity and gas meters: photograph the readings and see whether they match the bills.

Noise, neighbours and surroundings

• Listen with the windows closed and open: street, neighbours, lift, pipes, courtyard.
• Come at another time: morning, evening, a weekend.
• What is nearby: bars, restaurants, building sites, car parks, schools, noisy roads. Are flats in the building let to tourists by the day?
• Talk to the neighbours: who manages the building, are there leaks, how does the lift work, do people pay their fees? Neighbours' stories are not proof, but a source of questions.

The building: common property, fees and debts

Under the Law on Homeowners' Associations an owner's share in common property sets their share of common expenses (Art. 5(6)), and not using common property does not release them from these (Art. 21(2)). On a sale the seller must tell the buyer about existing and expected obligations to the association (Art. 21(1)(h)). The new owner is personally and jointly liable for unfulfilled obligations tied to membership of the association (Art. 14(6)).

The law applies where an association has been formed. Find out yourself whether your building has one.

• Is there a registered association, who is the chairperson and how to reach them, or does another organisation manage the building?
• Ask in writing: the amount of the fees, what they pay for, whether the flat owes anything, and a confirmation that there is no debt.
• Ask about meeting decisions on the roof, lift, facade and pipes, and who pays. A meeting must be convened at least once a year unless the charter says otherwise (Art. 27(1)).
• Debts for electricity, water and gas are not covered by this law. Ask a lawyer how such debts pass on and ask the suppliers for confirmations.

Which papers to ask for at the viewing

The registry extract (any person may receive one, Law on the Public Registry, Art. 10) and the seller check are in the guide on verifying a property. The registry also prepares certificates of public-law restrictions. Here are only the papers about the condition of the flat and the building.

• A plan of the flat. The registry lists among its information services the preparation of a cadastral plan and an inventory plan from the technical inventory archive; compare the plan with what you see and ask the lawyer which plan the deal needs.
• Bills for water, electricity, gas, heating and building fees, including the cold months.
• Documents on repairs and on replacing wiring, pipes, windows and the boiler, and guarantees for equipment that stays.
• Documents on any alteration of the layout. The registry's service pages do not name registering a change of an apartment's layout, so ask the lawyer which documents are needed.

What to photograph and film

1. A general view of each room from two corners, then ceilings and floors separately.
2. Each fault close up and from a distance so it is clear where it is. Put a ruler next to cracks.
3. The fuse board, the meters and their readings, the water and gas entry points.
4. The stairwell, stairs, lift, basement, roof, facade and neighbouring buildings.
5. Video: a slow walk through the whole flat with lights on and taps running. Record the street noise with the windows closed.
6. Keep the files with their dates in one folder and show them to an engineer and a lawyer before you decide.

When to bring an engineer and a lawyer

We publish no norms, deadlines or prices for an expert survey: we could not confirm them from an official source. Decide before the deposit.

• You can see cracks, damp, signs of leaks or an altered layout.
• The building has not been repaired for a long time and nobody knows about the roof, pipes or lift.
• The seller will not show the basement, roof, fuse board or documents.
• You want to remove or move walls, the kitchen or the bathroom.
• Choose the specialist yourself, not on the seller's or an agent's recommendation.

Red flags

If you meet one of these, stop, pay nothing and bring a specialist.

• You are not allowed to see everything: the roof, basement, fuse board or storage room is «locked, no key».
• Fresh paint or wallpaper only in patches, a strong smell of air freshener or chemicals.
• Pressure: «deposit today or someone else buys it».
• The seller cannot say who manages the building or what is paid, or will not confirm that there are no debts.
• The layout does not match the plan and the seller does not know why.
• The seller and the neighbours tell different stories about leaks, cracks or the lift.

The one-page checklist

• ☐ Viewed in daylight and again at another time of day
• ☐ Questions put to the seller, answers written down
• ☐ Facade, entrance, stairs and lift inspected
• ☐ Roof, attic, basement and technical rooms inspected or the refusal recorded
• ☐ Walls, ceilings, floors and cracks photographed
• ☐ Layout compared with the plan, rooms measured
• ☐ Windows, doors and balcony checked
• ☐ Water, drains, plumbing and meters checked
• ☐ Fuse board, gas, heating and ventilation shown to a specialist
• ☐ Noise, neighbours and surroundings checked at different times
• ☐ Building fees and debts confirmed in writing
• ☐ Photos and papers shown to an engineer and a lawyer before the deposit

What to ask an engineer and a lawyer

This is not engineering or legal advice. We could not turn the points below into verified statements, so put them to a specialist and get answers in writing.

• Which of the cracks and damp marks found are dangerous and what needs further investigation.
• Which norms and inspections apply to the lift, gas equipment and wiring in this building.
• Which rules on the seller's liability for defects of the flat apply and how to record what you found in the contract.
• How to check debts for electricity, water, gas and the building, and how to secure a guarantee in the contract.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources: matsne.gov.ge: Law on Homeowners' Associations (Arts. 5, 14, 21, 27) (accessed 2026-11-05) · matsne.gov.ge: Law on the Public Registry (Art. 10) (accessed 2026-11-05) · napr.gov.ge: information services (cadastral plan, inventory plan from the technical inventory archive) (accessed 2026-11-05) · napr.gov.ge: cadastral and geodetic services (internal measurement of buildings) (accessed 2026-11-05) · napr.gov.ge: registration of rights in immovable property (a change of an apartment's layout is not named among the services) (accessed 2026-11-05) · napr.gov.ge: Registry services, overview of sections (accessed 2026-11-05) · napr.gov.ge: public-law restrictions and tax pledges (Registry certificates) (accessed 2026-11-05) · matsne.gov.ge: Civil Code (rules on defects of the thing sold were not found in the part of the text we checked; question for a lawyer) (accessed 2026-11-05)

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