Q: Congratulations for your enthusiasm! What is the greatest success you’ve had in your activity as a top real estate consultant? IP: I will surprise you and not mention transactions. If I were free to choose, I’d say: Tens of cases where I chose to protect your client and lose the deal. This has made me poorer by some considerable sums but it made me proud, to sleep well at night and make a lot of friends and to have people that trust me. In the long term, I am sure I’m going to get back the money I lost. The respect that you and many others are giving me.  – [...]

  Q: Could you please explain what class A, B AND C mean for offices? Thank you.  IP: International companies follow the BOMA standards to mesure the quality of an office building. There are also other criteria but these are the most well known. You can find out more here: www.boma.org. Unfortunately, what we call "A" in Romania is, ussualy, "B" in Europe. There are very few "A" buildings in Romania (but many owners try to get "A" level rents for "B" or "C" buildings). I'd suggest also to go on the Romanian Green [...]

    Q: I want to buy an apartment in Iasi. What should I know before buying it since I grew up in the country and don’t really know? IP: I wrote an entire book about this! Tens of answers regarding all the aspects that you should know before buying a property. I apologize but I can’t reproduce everything here! A few advices: – The lowest price is not always the best – Take into account the cost of the renovations – Buy what you need, not what others tell you is best (FOR THEM) to buy – Be patient, it’s going to take some time before you find something [...]

  Q: Mr. Ilias, you talked a few times about the potential that Romania has and highlighting this potential in order to attract investors. But if I make a comparative analysis, I notice only the disadvantages compares to neighboring countries: bureaucracy, corruption, high taxes, etc. What do you think are the advantages of our country? IP: You’re right. Bureaucracy and taxes are only present in Romania. In other countries people simply press a button and get everything delivered to their door and they don’t have to pay taxes at all. Let’s be a bit more pragmatic. There [...]

  Q: How much would a 2 room apartment in a cheaper area of Bucharest, cost? Or a land to build a house in a cheaper area? IP: In Ferentari you can find lands with 20-50 euro/sq.m. There are apartments on the edge of Giurgiului Road (in buildings that look like they’ve been bombed) that cost less than 20.000 euro. But, between us, why don’t you continue renting for a few years and then buy something in a better area? Sometimes the cheapest option can become the most expensive.  – the question was asked during the q&a session organized by imobiliare.ro -  [...]

  Q: What type of real estate investments do you think are the most profitable long term for a buyer with a budget of 100.000 euro? IP: I will prepare an analysis on my blog, concerning this topic. The main question is what type of investor you are. The same medicine isn’t appropriate for every patient. In any scenario, because of the troubled times we live in, I’d suggest you put 30-50% of your capital in the back, in a 3-6 month deposit. There are options for real estate investments, stock options or other types of investments and if you give me more details on your investment [...]