Land Currently for Sale in Russia
Many plots of land available not far from Rostov Veliky, 3 to 4 hours north of Moscow
Rostov Veliky is an ancient town in the historic Golden Ring of Russia, founded more than 1100 years ago. In the Tale of Bygone Years, Rostov was first mentioned in the year 862.
Out in the country, 1/2 hour drive west of Rostov, there are hundreds of acres of good land for sale, only 6 kilometers (less than 4 miles) from the ancient Borisoglebsky Monastery.
Whether you are looking for 1 acre of land for a summer dacha, or 50 acres of land for a big family farm, serious inquiries can be directed to the following address:
Some of the available plots of land are outlined on this local cadastral map. To get an idea of the land plot sizes, consider that plot #200 is slightly less than 8 acres (3 hectares), and plot #113 is more than 30 acres (13 hectares):
If you are located abroad, it is possible to make payments via PayPal, local wire transfer, or simply by writing a check. Complicated international transfers are not necessary.
If you are able to pay with Rubles, or with cryptocurrency, a discount is available.
To get your name on a legal Russian document, showing your rights to the land, a trip to Russia will be necessary. So far, people have been handling this requirement in one of two ways:
Come visit Russia. While you are here, sign the necessary paperwork and receive the appropriate documents.
Use the honor system. Payment is made, and the land is set aside for you. Until you have an opportunity to physically set foot in Russia yourself, you can have someone you trust in Russia hold onto the land for you. (Obviously, you should only take option #2 if you already know someone in Russia, who you consider completely trustworthy. This is not the sort of thing you should entrust to a complete stranger.)
Here are some additional plots of land nearby, along the banks of the local river. These particular plots are in a water protection zone, which means you cannot do heavy agriculture, such as raising cattle or plowing the land to plant crops. You can, however, raise honeybees, catch some fish, and plant as many fruit trees as you like:
Other plots of land are also available, in addition to the ones listed here. For those who send serious inquiries, it is possible to see detailed official cadastral maps of the specific land you are interested in.
Differences Between Residential Land and Agricultural Land
Residential Land:
Foreigners can own it
You can build any type of house on it (brick, log, wood frame, etc.)
Cheapest possible electricity, if located in a rural village
Annual taxes are higher for residential land than for agricultural land
Agricultural Land:
Only Russian citizens can own it
Foreigners can rent it
You can build a nice barn on it. Theoretically, you could even include human living space in this “barn”, with bedrooms, bathrooms, etc.
If you register your tax status as a farmer, you can legally build a residential house on farmland. The house cannot have a concrete foundation, but would need to be on cement blocks (basically a pier-and-beam configuration). By law, the house can be no more than 500 square meters (5000 square feet) and can be no more than three stories tall.
Electricity is still affordable, but costs more per kilowatt hour on farmland, than on residential land in a rural village.
Annual taxes are much lower for agricultural land than for residential land.
Legally Rezoning Agricultural Land, Converting it to Residential Land
If you own agricultural land that directly borders the legal boundaries of a Russian village, it may be possible to rezone your land. Write a request to the local city administration, asking them to extend the borders of the village, to include your land within its oversight. Ask them to convert the land to residential land. If the city administration cooperates, the whole process can take 6-12 months. Once everything is successfully completed, you will have residentially zoned land that includes all of the associated rights and privileges.
If you would like to learn more about this part of Russia, and take a look at videos of multiple areas around Rostov Veliky, you may enjoy the following post: