Moscow’s property sector diverged sharply in the first three quarters of 2026. Developers of newly built apartments faced a steep drop in transactions, while the market for existing and completed homes proved remarkably resilient.
Moscow Housing Market Diverges As Buyers Choose Completed Homes
Data from Moscow’s Rosreestr office showed that the city’s housing market experienced mixed results through September 2026, according to real estate analysts at Metrium detailed in market reports.
ДДУ)—the volume remained 33% below September 2025 levels. Meanwhile, the secondary housing market moved in the opposite direction. Analysts attributed this trend to buyers temporarily steering away from under-construction projects in favor of ready-to-move-in properties.
Prices Rise for New Apartments As Construction Permits Drop
Even as transaction volumes fell, prices for new apartments continued to climb. Data compiled by CORE.XP revealed that the weighted average price per square meter in registered DDU transactions within the Moscow Ring Road reached 665,200 rubles. That marked a 19% increase year-over-year as reported by the analytics department. The primary market experienced a deep polarization where business-class and luxury segments absorbed the brunt of buyer activity.
Business-class properties accounted for roughly two-thirds of all newly built apartments sold during the nine-month period, driven largely by a sharper drop in demand for lower-priced comfort-class housing. At the same time, economists pointed to structural shifts in supply. According to economist Oleg Komolov, the number of newly launched multi-apartment residential projects fell by 29.4%. Total square footage approved under new construction permits dropped by 38.7% as explained to local media. Komolov noted that current construction activity relies heavily on the state-backed renovation program, which accounted for nearly 38.5% of all building permits issued between January and August 2026.
Developers Maintain Prices Using Subsidized Mortgages
Real estate experts emphasized that high key interest rates and rising labor expenses have increased project financing costs for developers. Real estate expert Roman Krylov explained that developers faced mounting operational expenses and restricted new project pipelines, making widespread price cuts unfeasible according to analysis published by ABN24. Instead of lowering base prices, builders relied on long-term subsidized mortgage programs spanning 15 or 20 years to maintain sales momentum.
In the luxury segment, the gap between inventory and buyer demand widened further. Kalinka ecosystem analysts estimated that clearing the accumulated stock of 15,200 unsold elite apartments and penthouses—totaling 1.7 million square meters—would take approximately eight years if developers stopped launching new projects entirely based on market projections. Despite a 13% drop in high-end transactions during the first nine months of the year, developers initiated sales in 20 new luxury complexes, compared to 12 projects during all of 2025.