Russian exodus from Karlový Vary floods real estate market

The Russians are leaving Karlový Vary, according to Lidové noviny, and the result has had a dramatic impact on the real estate market in the city's center. Local agents claim that around 50 percent of the buildings in the most popular areas of the city are owned by Russians. With so many attempting to exit the market at the same time, it's become difficult for any of them to achieve the sales price they'd assumed. Lidové noviny highlights one example of a Russian who bought a building from the city for CZK 60m and carried out a complete renovation. He's trying to sell the building today for CZK 200m but is unable to find a buyer. "The more reasonable ones listen to advice and reduce the price, but there aren't many of those," says Petra Baboučka, regional manager for M&M Reality in the Karlovy Vary region. The situation is made more complicated by their habit of listing a single flat in multiple agencies at the same time. The newspaper speculates that the Russians some are leaving the city because of political reasons or for economic problems caused by the sanctions on Russia.