Instalment plan calculator for new builds in Georgia

What this calculator shows

Most developers in Tbilisi and Batumi sell apartments under construction on an instalment plan: a down payment when the contract is signed, then monthly payments until the building is finished, sometimes with a last payment when the keys are handed over. Many plans are advertised as interest-free. The question a buyer should ask is what the same apartment would cost if paid in full on the day of signing, because developers often give a discount for that, and a plan that charges no interest but forgoes the discount is not free. This calculator sets out the payments on a plan, the total you pay, the difference from the full-payment price, and the effective yearly cost of spreading the payments. It then compares that cost with what your money could earn elsewhere while you keep it.

The defaults describe an example, not a particular offer: a $75,000 apartment, 20% down, 24 equal monthly payments without interest, and a 5% discount for paying in full. Replace them with the terms in the developer's written offer. Every result is an estimate for planning; it is not a quote, and it does not tell you whether the developer will finish the building.

What each field means

Price on the instalment plan, USD

The full price you pay if you choose the plan, as written in the offer or the draft contract, including any surcharge the developer adds for paying in instalments.

Discount for paying in full, %

How much lower the price would be if you paid everything at signing. Ask for it in writing; if the developer offers no discount, enter 0. The default 5% is an example for illustration, not a market rate.

Down payment, %

The share of the plan price paid at signing. Advertised plans range from no down payment to a third of the price or more.

Instalment period, months

The number of monthly payments after the down payment. The first payment is assumed one month after signing.

Final payment at handover, %

A lump sum some plans leave until the building is finished and the keys are handed over. The calculator assumes it is paid together with the last monthly instalment. Enter 0 if the plan has none.

Interest charged by the developer, % per year

Some plans, usually the longer ones or those that continue after completion, charge interest on the unpaid balance. Most short plans are advertised at 0%.

What your money earns meanwhile, % per year

The return you would otherwise get on the money the plan lets you keep for longer. The default of 2.6% is the average rate on US dollar deposits in Georgia in December 2025; use your own deposit rate or expected return.

Assumptions

How the results are calculated

The down payment and the final payment are their percentages of the plan price. The rest of the price is divided into equal monthly instalments; if the developer charges interest, the instalments are calculated as a standard repayment at the monthly rate, so that each payment covers that month's interest and part of the balance. The total paid is the down payment plus all instalments plus the final payment. The price if paid in full is the plan price reduced by the discount. The extra cost of the plan is the difference between the two. The effective annual cost is the yearly interest rate at which the plan's payments, discounted month by month, add up exactly to the full-payment price: it is the rate the developer is in effect charging you for the time the plan gives you, whether or not the offer calls it interest. If the plan costs no more than paying in full, that rate is zero.

The inputs in all three cases are illustrations chosen to show how the calculator behaves, not offers from specific developers.

Follow the default case. The down payment is 20% of $75,000, that is $15,000. The remaining $60,000 is paid in 24 instalments of $2,500. Nothing is added for interest, so the plan totals exactly $75,000. Paid in full, the apartment would cost 5% less, $71,250. The plan therefore costs $3,750 more, and since that extra is spread over two years of deferred payments, it amounts to about 6.5% a year. If your money earns 2.6% in a dollar deposit, paying in full is the cheaper choice; the plan only wins if you can earn more than 6.5% a year on the money it lets you keep.

The third case shows why a stated interest rate and the effective cost differ slightly: 6% a year charged monthly comes to about 6.2% once the monthly compounding is counted.

How to read the result

Read the effective annual cost first. It turns a discount you give up, a surcharge or an interest charge into one number you can compare with a bank loan, with a deposit rate or with another developer's plan. A plan advertised as interest-free can still cost several percent a year if paying in full earns a discount; a plan with interest can be cheaper than it looks if the developer offers no discount for full payment.

Then read the monthly instalment against your income. A plan is a debt, and the payments continue whether or not the building progresses on schedule, and whether or not your own income changes. Banks in Georgia must check that a borrower can afford a mortgage under the National Bank's limits on the share of income that repayments may take. Developer plans fall outside those limits, so the check is yours to make.

Finally, look at the final payment. A large sum due at handover is often paid with a bank mortgage taken once the apartment is registered, and the mortgage calculator shows what that loan would cost. If you plan to refinance this way, ask a bank before signing whether it will lend on that building and on what terms.

What an instalment plan does not protect you from

An instalment plan spreads the price; it does not spread the risk. You pay while the building does not yet exist as property, so everything depends on the developer finishing it and registering your unit. Developer plans in Georgia are not regulated as loans: according to a former Vice Governor of the National Bank, quoted by Sovanews in October 2026, they are mostly in foreign currency, sit outside the limits on repayments as a share of income, may not be reported to the credit bureau and come with no duty to disclose an effective interest rate. That is why this calculator works out the rate for you.

• Tie payments to progress. Instalments linked to stages you can verify, such as the frame or the roof, protect you better than a calendar alone. Our guide to the developer contract lists the clauses that do this.
• Read the late-payment clause. Check what happens if you miss an instalment: the penalty, the grace period and whether the developer may cancel the contract and keep what you have paid.
• Read the late-completion clause. The plan fixes your dates; the contract should fix the developer's, with a penalty if the building is late.
• Register what can be registered. A preliminary ownership right on an apartment under construction can be registered in the Public Registry for the standard registration fee, which puts your claim on record.
• Check the developer before the plan. A generous plan is not evidence of a strong developer. Our guide to checking a developer sets out what to verify first.