BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 7. Housing costs in Georgia continued to rise in August 2026, even as the country's residential property market showed signs of stabilization after several years of rapid price growth.
According to the National Statistics Office of Georgia (Geostat), prices in the housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels group rose 8.5% year-on-year in August, with actual rentals for housing up 8.4%, electricity, gas and other fuels up 10.3%, and maintenance and repair of dwellings up 8.7%. The group contributed 0.82 percentage points to the country's overall 5.6% annual inflation rate.
The rental price trend comes as Georgia's residential property market shows signs of cooling from its earlier pace of appreciation. Galt & Taggart, the investment banking arm of Lion Finance Group, told Trend in an exclusive comment that price growth in the market has stabilized. "Based on our analysis, primary market price rose by 6.1% year-on-year in May," the company said, adding that it expects growth to remain within a 5-7% annual range, supported by urbanization, shrinking household sizes and rising incomes.
Tbilisi's gross rental yield stood at 8.4% in May, broadly in line with its 8-9% long-term average, with average rents stabilizing around $10 per square meter, according to Galt & Taggart. Trend's calculations show that combined with the 6.1% price growth, this points to a total nominal return of roughly 14.5% for a Tbilisi residential investor over the period — before accounting for taxes, vacancy or maintenance costs.
Galt & Taggart also noted that Georgian buyers accounted for 76% of surveyed primary sales in Tbilisi in 2026, with Israeli buyers at 11% and Russian buyers at just 3%, while demand in Batumi was more diversified. The company said the post-war migration wave mainly boosted rental demand and yields rather than driving residential sales in the capital.
For reference, Georgia's central bank has cited housing and rental costs as a contributor to inflation remaining above its 3% target, while continued tourism activity and foreign rental demand have helped keep gross yields elevated even as sales price growth has moderated.
