Russia Simplified

Notes on living and working in Russia

Herring under a fur coat – staple Russian food

Herring under a fur coat

Herring under a fur coat, “Селёдка под шубой” [Seledka pod shuboi] or just “Шуба” [Shuba] is a very popular Russian dish. It would be more correct to acclaim this dish “soviet staple dish” as it was invented in soviet times. All soviet food has two primary qualities: it is made of cheap, simple and always available ingredients and it requires time and effort to fix. Both apply to Herring under a fur coat. History of Herring under a fur coat is not clear. It resembles some Finnish cuisine recipes with herring and beetroot, but I am unsure it originated from there.

Since putting together Herring under a fur coat is time consuming, it is not an everyday food. At home this dish is made for holidays, like New Year or some family event. It is normally made in large batches as normally it goes onto the holiday table and many people will eat it, but also to justify time and effort making it. However many Russian food cafes and restaurants (like almost all) serve Herring under a fur coat, also you can find in most food stores in salad department. Herring under a fur coat is a layered salad. Recipes vary, so it can have different taste depending on who makes it. Herring under a fur coat from stores is just a remote resemblance of what is should taste like, so why not make it yourself — the proper way?

Click “Read more” below for a step by step recipe of Herring under a fur coat.

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Costs of living in Moscow

Costs of living in Moscow

How much does it cost to live in Moscow, Russia?

Many expats come to stay in Moscow on a pre-arranged job contract. They are paid good salary, have benefits and relocation support from their employers, so expats never have to worry about costs of living in Moscow.

Sometimes it happens that people relocate to Moscow, Russia not having any job contract or any substantial source of income. This can happen for a number of different reasons, mostly private, I guess.  The question comes up — what it’s gonna cost me to live in Russia, specifically Moscow, as it seems to be the most popular destination for foreigners to relocate?

Below is an estimate of minimum costs of living in Moscow per month for one adult.

Primary components of living cost:

  • Health insurance
  • Apartment rental
  • Utilities
  • Transportation
  • Food/Groceries
  • Entertainment
  • Clothes and personal necessities

Health insurance

It is very wise to have health insurance in Russia. Annual cost is around 30,000-35,000 Rubles paid at ones.

Apartment rental

There is a separate article on this website about important considerations on renting apartment.

Initial rental cost will be a monthly rental fee multiplied three times. There will be three monthly rental costs to be paid all at ones: one for the first moths of stay, one for the last month of stay and one as a real estate agent fee. There might be a damage deposit, but let’s imagine apartment owner does not charge that. Also you can agree on smaller amount with the agent or eliminate it altogether if you are moving into a shared apartment or someone you know leaves apartment and you move in.

The cheapest one-room decent apartment will cost you 30,000 Rubles monthly. This is will be in relatively remote locations, but still within MKAD. That means your initial payment, as described above, will be 90,000 Rubles.

Since you are on budget and renting inexpensive apartment, most likely you will have to pay for utilities and maintenance — fully or partially. Depending on what is included in the rent and how much of electricity and water you consume, it will be an extra 3,000-7,000 Rubles. Let’s imagine a very likely scenario that apartment owner pays maintenance fees and you only have to pay for electricity, hot and cold water. In this scenario your utility bill will be around 3,000 Rubles monthly.

You can save on housing, opting for shared apartment. Living in shared apartment will cut rental and utility costs (at least twice if it’s two tenants in a two-room apartment), albeit you’ll have to compromise your privacy and overall comfort.

Transportation

For getting around, the most economical option is to buy a ticket for 60 trips. It costs 1,900 Rubles (as of September 2019 and in might change in 2020) and is valid on all kinds of Moscow transportation for 45 days. If you have to commute for work or school daily and make some extra trips on weekends you will use up all 60 trips in one month. If you have to use two types of transportation 60 trips will not be enough and you will have to spend extra money on tickets. Single trip will cost 38 Rubles if you use Troika card. If you live outside MKAD and your commute includes train or intercity bus that will add extra cost.

Groceries

It is sort of hard to estimate how much you will spend on groceries, because different people eat different food and have different daily needs. If you are into saving on food, you will have to buy raw products and do your own cooking.

How much food costs in Moscow? Below are some average prices for quality food in Moscow stores, all in Rubles. I emphasize quality food, because Russian stores sell a lot of fake products and simply rubbish you don’t wanna eat. Also, when estimating costs of groceries it is assumed that you will keep a balanced diet eating fruits, vegetables, meat, seafood, healthy grains and other products good for your body. You can live on bread, pasta, canned food and cheap factory processed products and save some money this way, but in the long run it will have a toll on your health.

Prices on some products in Moscow food stores

All prices are per 1 kilogram, unless indicated otherwise:

Milk (1l)-65; Eggs (10)-60; Cheese (locally produced)-500…700; Beef-500…700; Chicken-300; Pork-400…500; Bread (loaf)-60; Pasta (one pack)-80; Potatoes -25…150; Carrots-30; Tomatoes (seasonal)-150…120; Lettuce mix (pack of)-200; Cucumbers (500g pack)-90; Salmon (local, frozen)-500; Salmon (imported)-1300; Olives (canned, imported)-150, Flour-85; Apples-80…150; Oranges (imported)-110; Bananas (imported)-65; Lemons-100…150; Beer (local, 450ml bottle)-65..85, Wine (Spanish, Imported)-350…500.

You will need to buy soap (from 30 Rubles to 1,000 Rubles), laundry detergent (200-450 Rubles), toothpaste (100 Rubles), other personal hygiene items, cleaning detergents, toilet paper and so on.

If you wanna check prices on specific items, go to any online grocery store that serves Moscow and see how much things cost.

In total it is estimated that you will spend around 30,000 Rubles on buying all food and everyday necessities. Again, it will very much depend on your personal needs, so above amount would be an average. I also don’t believe anyone can make living on less than 20K Rubles as it will me more of a survival, not a living.

Eating out

If you work or go to school, you will have to spend money on eating out during the day and cheapest meal (business lunch or some basic sandwich and a drink) you can get would cost around 200-300 Rubles.

Another thing is, in Moscow everything is extremely far (unless you live in the center, but then you don’t need to read this article). If you are going somewhere it takes hours and you spend the whole day in town, so you’ll need to have some food.

Multiplied by 20 average working days, it adds 6,000 Rubles to the budget.

If you work or study, as an option, you can bring your own food to eat during the day, if your company (or school) has facilities where you can eat. Most Russian offices do not provide their employees places to eat food, whilst most international companies do. If you work for a good company it most likely will provide some allowance to pay for your lunches.

Internet

It is assumed that internet will be included in the apartment rental price. If it’s an extra cost, it will be somewhere between 500 and 1,000 Rubles per month depending on the “last mile” technology used by internet provider and connection speed.

Phone

Calling plan with some minutes for local calls included and generous data package will cost you around 500-600 Rubles monthly. The data package would be about 4Gb of mobile internet. Some cellphone companies have data plans with unlimited traffic on messengers, so you can use that to connect with your family and friends all the time and never worry to run out of traffic.

Entertainment

You will most likely need to socialize and eat out, perhaps visit some events. A simple dinner in an inexpensive (but good) cafe will cost you around 1,500 Rubles with some basic alcohol. Theater tickets start from roughly 600 Rubles cheapest, but good seat on a good theater performance will cost around 2,000-3,000 Rubles and more. Clubs can be expensive, so clubbing is not on the list of minimum estimates.

Other costs

As you can see above estimates do not include buying anything than food and essential necessities. Buying things and paying for services is unavoidable, so there will be an extra cost for that. There might be unexpected expenditures as well. If you are living in Moscow there will be costs of clothing, personal cosmetics (if you use that), perhaps you will spend some money on your hobby, travel. If you get sick, basic medicine to treat a simple flu will cost you roughly 1500 Rubles and doctor visits will be extra if you don’t have private insurance. There can be other costs of living depending on your situation and circumstances.

In total, based on real life experiences, absolute minimum (not including apartment rental cost) comes up to 50,000-60,000 Rubles per month for one adult. In today’s exchange rate that is about US$770-US$900.

You can spend less, depending on what your needs are. In most cases smaller budget would likely mean compromising quality of living. Many Russians live on a much lesser budget, but locals mastered the art of living on a small money. It takes probably to be local and a whole life to learn all the tricks on living on small budgets in Russia. After all, many people survive here, not really live, thus budgets of locals is not a good point of reference.

What are the minimal costs of living in Moscow?

50K-60K (overall living costs) + 30K (apartment rental) gets us to a minimum budget of 80,000-90,000 Rubles per month. This amount gives you an idea of a minimum budget to stay in Moscow.

Thus if you are looking for a job in Moscow, it should pay a very minimum of 80,000 Rubles (after the income tax). This amount will afford you living here. But again, it will be a very basic, modest lifestyle, when you have a shelter, simple food and basic needs met. More demands and higher quality of everything will require more money.

If you live outside MKAD in one of satellite cities, costs will be less, because prices are somewhat smaller outside Moscow.

If you are relocating with a partner, obviously the minimum cost of living will not double. You will save on costs of some groceries and apartment costs.

This article is to give you an idea of a minimum costs of living in Moscow, not to draw you a plan of spendings.

If you have children you will have to pay for their private school (very pricey). If they speak Russian, can attend local public school that is free.

May 1st, Labour Day, dacha and resilience of Russians

May 1st, Labour Day, dacha and resilience of Russians

Holidays and their real, deeper meaning help in understanding Russian culture, Russian character and Russian mindset. It also reveals how ordinary Russian people live their daily lives.

Some foreigners residing in Russia have no idea of how ordinary Russians live. Not everyone, but many expats spend their time (contract, business assignment, whatever brought them here) in Russia between corporate office in one of those high rise buildings in “Delovoi Centr” area and their expensive apartment on Patriarshie Prudy. Inside Sadovoe Kolzo, is all they know and believe this is how all Russians live.

May 1st in soviet times was propaganda holiday as communist doctrine proclaimed labor as one of its cornerstones. Each year there was big parade on May 1st, with a must attendance. There were lots of street decorations, large billboards with communist mottos, typed in bold white letters on solid red background, organized crowds of people dressed up, holding flowers.

After ussr collapse, Russian government decided to keep May 1st a public holiday. Now it is two days of the holiday observation, May 1st and May 2nd.

Now, many years away from all that ussr nonsense, there still will be meetings and parades on streets, here and there, very local and not as massive as it used to be in CCCP. Very few politically engaged people would join those events. Some people will come because they truly believe in whatever political idea that makes them join those events. Some will come because they are stuck in the past and firmly believe in celebrating May 1st the soviet way. Some will come because their boss tells them to attend those events, or he will not pay their bonus. Political regimes come and go, bot some things just never change here.

Nowadays many people will take those few working days between May 1st and May 9th as vacation and fly far away. Majority of Russians however, will go to their dachas. May 1st is a massive exodus from Moscow and larger cities. Here comes the true meaning of May 1st holiday.

Contrary to what most expats know, dacha is not a summerhouse for fun and leisure, at least not for majority of dacha owners. Dacha is a source of basic food for people, who cannot afford buying it on those expensive pseudo “farmers markets” or grocery stores. Dacha also is a source of produce for those who can’t afford paying with their health for that crappy food that many retailers sell. Many consumers simply don’t know any better; for them what “azbuka” stocks is a standard of quality.

When you walk on Moscow streets in spring, raise you head and look at apartment windows. In some windows you will see arrays of powerful lamps stationed on windowsills, always on. Those lamps produce white, sometimes purplish light. This is a setup for growing sprouts. Later, in the beginning of May, those sprouts will be transferred to open soil on dachas. Tomatoes, peppers, cabbage, cucumbers, other vegetables will grow faster in an open soil from sprouts, opposed to growing from seeds.

On May 1st holidays Russians will go to their dachas to do spring cleaning, prepare patches for planting. They will plant potatoes, variety of vegetables, flowers. This all — planting, doing patches is a very hard work and this is what Labor Day is all about.

Unlike other holidays that have rather historical or symbolic meaning, May 1st dacha activities manifest hard labour in its most simple and primitive form that’s been around as long as human kind exists — cultivating soil to grow food.

Communist revolution of 1917 brought people from suburbs and villages to cities, mixing and replacing its original habitats. Russia has always been an agrarian country throughout most of its pre-revolution history. Ancestors of many, if not most Russians cultivated soil in the past and this is how they fed their families and made their living. Working on the soil is in Russian DNA. It is also in Russian DNA living in a hostile environment, feeding and supporting themselves and not relying on anything else. Even soviet propaganda and oppression machine could not reverse this part of Russian DNA.

Cultivating soil, a piece of land that will grow produce and supply food for the entire year is a very Russian thing. This is how people survived before communist revolution. Growing own food is how Russians went through decades of slowly degrading soviet union and disastrous nineties. Growing own food is how many people continue surviving now.

It is interesting, when Russians move to other countries for permanent residence, many want to have their own patches on the backyard to grow berries, fruits and vegetables.

May 1st being a Labour Day is a reminder, that Russians will sustain, no matter the circumstances. If tomorrow the whole world turns against Russia and the iron curtain sets in again, there will be dachas with simple, but quality food. It will be weekend trips to dacha, spring through the summer, canning and making pickles in the fall.

Self-reliance is one of things, foreigners don’t really get about Russia. It is deeply rooted in Russian culture and manifests in many different ways, be it response to external challenges or just supporting own family in tough times. This is what dacha primarily is all about, leisure, shashlik and banya come second.

Practicalities of May 1st holidays. 

Moscow and most larger cities get spring cleaning in April. For May 1st Moscow and most large cities will be polished and decorated to the upcoming holidays. Normally, beginning of May is when warm weather sets in. All gardens and parks will be in bloom. There will be less people on streets and in public transportation. Moscow will have events on streets, squares and other public places. Business will be slower, because many decision makers will leave country. This is probably one the best period season for a short visit to Moscow.

Russian red caviar buying guide

Russian red caviar buying guide

How to choose and buy real red caviar in Russia and Moscow.

Red caviar is one of Russian staple foods. Red caviar in Russia is relatively inexpensive, easy to buy, popular among locals. Red caviar has been an export product throughout most of Russian history.

As you may know, red caviar comes from salmon. Not many people realize “salmon” is a collective name for many different species of fish. Salmon in Russian is ЛОСОСЬ (LOSOS’) also known as “red fish” or КРАСНАЯ РЫБА (KRASNAYA RIBA) because of its distinctive pink to red color of meat.

All species of salmon produce different red caviar. This means size, color, texture and ultimately TASTE of red caviar varies depending on a salmon specie the caviar comes from.

Beware, nowadays many shops (especially large retailers) sell red caviar from farmed lake trout. If the packaging says РАДУЖНАЯ ФОРЕЛЬ this is lake trout caviar and this is a FAKE red caviar. Real, natural red caviar must come from wild sea salmon.

When you are buying red caviar, there must be a clear indication on the packaging of what kind of salmon the caviar comes from. If it just says ЛОСОСЕВАЯ (salmon), you will be buying the cheapest kind of caviar or a fake. This means you need to read what is written on a packaging of caviar before you buy it. I suggest not to buy unpackaged caviar sold by weight. Primarily because you never know what you are buying, but also the quality of such caviar not worth money paid.

Good manufacturers directly indicate salmon specie the caviar comes from.

Before buying any caviar, look at its packaging contents (as usual, written in a small font). Aside from caviar, salt and 1-2 preservatives there must be no other ingredients. Preservatives are required to keep caviar from spoiling quick. Other than salt and preservatives, there must be nothing in the caviar you are about to buy. The caviar must have no sugar, no any other ingredient that would clearly indicate a FAKE or low quality product.

Very rarely you can find red caviar not containing any preservatives, just salt. It’s a very fresh and very natural product, this type of caviar must be consumed within 1-2 days after purchase. This type of caviar is never sold in grocery stores, only in specialty caviar shops. Specialty caviar shops are found around Moscow. Those are not caviar shops in airports (who knows what they sell?).

Examine the caviar packaging sticker further. It is good to know where manufacturer of the caviar is located. If it’s Far East of Russia, specifically Sakhalin and Kamchatka, most likely the caviar you are buying was made from fresh raw caviar. If caviar manufacturer is located somewhere else (especially central Russia), it most likely is made from frozen caviar (or it’s a fake).

There are specialty shops in Moscow that sell only red caviar from Sakhalin. Their caviar is made from freshly caught wild fish.

Ideal packaging for red caviar is a glass or plastic jar. Small metal cans so popular and still produced since soviet times is not a good option, primarily because you can’t see what is inside.

When you buy caviar, examine contents of packaging. Caviar grains must be whole, have even color, same size. Caviar grains must not be broken. When the caviar is of a lower quality, caviar grains are broken and what you buy is mostly caviar liquid. This is the type of not canned caviar most grocery stores in Moscow sell by weight. (Hint — don’t buy it, as it’s low quality product or a fake)

As mentioned, there are different types of caviar depending on a salmon specie it comes from. Below list has description of caviar from the most popular species of salmon (names of salmon are in Russian as it would be indicated on a can with caviar).

КЕТА (KETA) — has one of largest caviar grains, 5-7 millimeters in diameter, red-orange colored, the grain’s shell is more stiff. Has very gentle buttery taste. Keta is the most pricey kind of red caviar.

ГОРБУША (GORBUSHA) — caviar grains have size of 3-5 millimeters, light-orange colored, the taste is universal. The most inexpensive and popular type of red caviar.

КИЖУЧ (KIZHUCH)— caviar grains are 3-4 millimeters, have dark red color and a slightly bitter taste.

НЕРКА (NERKA) — caviar grains are about 3 millimeters in diameter, bright red color, taste is a bit bitter.

ЧАВЫЧА (CHAVYCHA) — one of largest caviar grains, 6-7 millimeters in diameter, rich red color, slightly “spicy” taste.

Above taste descriptions are all subjective. Each caviar has its own distinctive taste and only you can say how each caviar really tastes to you. If you are in Russia for a long time, try each kind and decide what you like the best. If you are on a short visit, try whatever picks your attention, you will not be disappointed. Real red caviar from wild salmon, properly made is a high quality product, tasty and full of good nutrients.

There are many ways to serve and eat red caviar. In soviet tradition red caviar is served in halves of hard boiled egg whites. Red caviar goes well on a slice of white or black bread. Having caviar with Russian pancakes is also a good way of eating it.

My personal choice is a thin slice of black bread with some butter on top of it and red caviar on top of the butter. Cold vodka shot makes an excellent compliment to red caviar served this way.

Renting apartment in Russia – important considerations.

Renting apartment in Moscow

Renting apartment in Russia Moscow – important considerations.

Information in this article applies to renting apartments in Moscow and any large city in Russia.

Advice number one for those who decide renting apartment in Moscow or anywhere else in Russia — hire a good real estate agent. Good real estate agent will save you from many hassles and will save your money. Renting apartment in Russia in general and in Moscow specifically is not very straightforward process. There is a lot of fraud, hidden catches, specifics to consider. To avoid losing money and nerves, hire a professional who knows all peculiarities of the market to manage the whole process for you.

Not everyone calling themselves a real estate agent is a real professional. You wanna hire a real estate agent by recommendation from other people to ensure they are able to do the job well. Ask other expats, Russians who can recommend a specific person they have dealt with in the past.

You must sign a contract with real estate agent before you start working with them. Their fee will be somewhere between 50% and 100% of a monthly rental cost. For really expensive apartments the fee can be negotiated to be less than 50%.

Housing options in Moscow. Moscow has very few types of housing, you will only have a vast choice of apartments of various types, sizes, decoration, layout and equipment. There are private houses and townhouses, but very limited, mostly in remote areas or outside Moscow.

The most comfortable areas are: center (roughly within the Third Ring), West, North West, South West, parts of South, parts of North. Generally to be avoided (for a multitude of various reasons): North East, East, South East.

Most expats prefer to live in the center of Moscow. Make sure to familiarize yourself with pros and cons living in Moscow downtown.

Despite popularity of the central parts of Moscow, very good or even excellent apartment options can be found in areas away from the center. It can be a newly built apartment complex with spacious and nicely equipped apartments with garage and all infrastructure nearby.

Typical, standard apartment will have: kitchen, bathroom (toilet can be separate from bathroom), living room and a bedroom. When you see number of rooms indicated in advertisements this means living room plus number of bedrooms. One-room apartments have just one room that serves both as living room and bedroom. One-room apartments are normally in higher demand because they are cheaper and more suitable for single people or families of two.

Before signing rental contract you need to check all the important details about the property. Whatever information you read in the advertising, can turn out to be a blunt lie. “Ten minutes from subway” may mean “ten minutes on a bus that runs every half hour and fifteen minutes on foot from the bus stop”. “Cozy, clean, quiet apartment” in reality can be old, rundown soviet flat, windows facing noisy street.

Apartment must haves: air conditioner, washing machine, water boiler, mosquito nets, thick metal door. Suggested extras: second entrance door, stationary water filter (reverse osmosis type). Most apartments come with kitchen furniture, stove and oven. Most rental apartments come fully furnished.

More information on must haves of Moscow apartment.

It is better to avoid apartments with all windows facing West. In each room facing West you will need to have air conditioner that you will have to run for the most part of summer.

Prices on renting apartment in Moscow vary. The cheapest rental cost is around 30K Rubles per month (around US$500 on today’s exchange rate). Use current exchange rate to calculate cost in other currencies. For 30K you get average one-room or two-room, (depending on location) apartment. Most likely all rental options for this price will be in remote areas, soviet style apartment buildings. If you are really on a budget, feasible consideration can be shared apartment or housing outside Moscow, in one of multiple satellite cities that make Moscow metro area. Prices for renting larger apartment closer to the center of Moscow has no limits. It can be 100K or it can be 300K or more, depending on many factors such as location, type of building, apartment design and equipment and many others.

When you found an option, you need to check few basic things. All checks below normally would be performed by a real estate agent. However it is for you to understand what needs checking and for what reason. Below list is nor fully complete, but covers essential pieces of information and checks you need to do on your own or, better with help of a real estate agent.

Apartment owner must provide proof of ownership. Ownership certificate and passport are documents certifying ownership. It is also good to check utility bills, that must have the same person’s name. In absence of certificate, real estate agent can request information from the state registry. If it turns out several people own one apartment it poses a number of potential issues.

First thing you need to check is whether apartment owner(s) will do a registration for you and your family. All people living in Russia: citizens, long time visitors alike required to obtain registration.

Registration is a formality of informing migration services on where you live. To obtain registration you need to fill standard forms, obtain signatures from the owner. Ones you have the forms, you go to a nearby organization called “multifunctional center”. The apartment owner must be with you in person and show their passport. Clerks will check your registration paperwork, stamp it and give you a registration slip. In some situations process can be different but 9 out of 10 cases it takes just a short trip to a nearby “multifunction center”, but it requires apartment owner to accompany you. If you plan to travel frequently, you will need to renew your registration every time you return back to Moscow and if apartment owner is not available, getting registration will be a hassle.

Judging by the number of questions asked online, registration seems to be a huge issue for foreigners in Moscow. Although apartment owners are required by the law to register all their tenants, many refuse to do registration for various reasons. Some owners hide income they receive on renting out their property to avoid paying taxes (4-6%). Some live abroad and can’t go with tenants to renew registration. There can be other obstacles.

First thing you need to be very positive about before signing rental contract — apartment owner will assist you with obtaining registration. Many owners will promise anything to get their apartment rented, but not many people in this culture keep their word. This is why you need to check yourself with help of your realtor if the owner is able to help you with registration.

Initial rental payment normally includes: rental cost for the fist month, rental cost for the last month and a deposit. Deposit is for covering possible damages caused to property by tenants. Deposit normally vary from 50% to 100% of monthly rental cost. Rental conditions usually require one month termination notice, last month payment covers that last month of stay. If you terminate earlier then one month, the amount will not be returned.

Rental contract. Many apartment owners are against signing contracts to avoid paying taxes and bearing responsibilities. If the owner refuses to sign the contract you must walk away from this rental option — rental contract is an absolute must. Good real estate agents know what the contract should look like, what needs to be included in what wording.

Beware, that documents in language other than Russian, legally not valid in Russia. Therefore you will need to sign contract in Russian and there must be someone who can explain rental contract to you item by item.

Any further agreement with apartment owner(s) must be fixed in written form only. In case of a dispute or argument between tenants and apartment owners, only written agreements will be considered. Verbal agreements are not valid in Russia.

Payments. Rental contract must specify how monthly payment is made. In Russia most of the time rental payments are done in cash. No matter what payment method is you need to have proof of payment. If rental setup is done in a legally proper way, apartment owner can receive payments onto their bank account. This means you need to have local bank account to make transfers. When you transfer money, the bank will give you paperwork that serves as proof of payment. If apartment owner is registered as solitary proprietor they can give you receipts as official proof of cash payment. If it’s cash paid privately, you need to obtain receipt note (in Russian — raspiska) on each amount you give to the apartment owner, including initial and monthly payments.

Before signing a contract, collect some information about the neighbors, including those living upstairs and downstairs. Any apartment building will have neighbors of all kinds, not always pleasant people. Looking at public areas of the apartment building, its overall condition and cleanliness, gives you hints on what kinds of people live here. Public places include staircases, lifts, entrance areas.

Soundproofing in most soviet era buildings made of concrete panels or blocks is almost nonexistent. Buildings that have best soundproofing are those built before 1953 and modern upper class (meaning pricier rental costs) apartment complexes.

Russians have no respect to residential laws especially when it comes to keeping noice down at night and weekends. Thus if you have noisy neighbors (drunks, young families, families with kids, people playing musical instruments and so on) you will be exposed to noises of all kinds. Renting apartment in a “prestigious” and more expensive areas of Moscow gives you absolutely no guarantees.

Besides being noisy, bad neighbors will cause other disturbing events such as banging at your door in the middle of the night, throwing cigarette butts on your balcony and into open windows, higher risks of flooding or fire and other unpleasant things.

Before moving in, you or your agent must document in detail (in written and photograph) property condition and all existing damages, even little ones. This is to avoid claiming damages on you when you move out. Many owners try to withhold deposit amount by pointing at scratches and small holes from nails, claiming money to do the repairs. To avoid this, conditions of deposit and its return must be clearly defined in a rental contract. Also all the damages must be documented before you move in.

Property condition detailing is signed by the owner and tenants and you keep your copy. The list must include all equipment and furniture and its condition. You wanna ensure that all electronic works, pipes do not leak, light switches do not shortcut and so on.