When the developer is late in Georgia: what to do

What can you do when a developer is late?

Most new flats in Georgia are sold before they are built, and delivery dates slip. Georgia has no special law on shared construction, so a buyer's rights when a developer is late come from two places: the contract you signed, and the general rules of the Civil Code on delay, penalties and withdrawal. Used well, they let you choose between waiting with compensation and leaving the deal with your money back.

This guide explains what the law says about a late developer, the steps to take and in what order, how a registered preliminary ownership right protects you, and what happens if the developer cannot finish at all.

Start with your contract

Before anything else, read the clauses that decide your position: the delivery date and whether it is a fixed date or "about" a quarter, any grace period, the penalty for delay and how it is calculated, the definition of force majeure, and your right to withdraw. Georgian law does not set a statutory penalty for a developer's delay, so if the contract names no penalty, you will be claiming damages instead, which you must prove. Our guide to the 12 clauses of a developer contract shows what these clauses should say.

When is a developer legally late?

Under the Civil Code, a party is in default when it misses a fixed deadline, or fails to perform after a warning following the due date. There is no default if the delay is not the developer's fault. Once in default, the developer is liable for any negligence, and even for accidental damage unless it proves the damage would have happened anyway, and you may claim the damage the delay causes you, such as rent you had to pay elsewhere.

The contractual penalty

A penalty is an amount the contract says the developer pays for a delay, often a percentage of the price per day or month. It must be agreed in writing and may exceed your actual loss. Where it is a penalty for late performance, you can claim it together with delivery of the flat; damages remain claimable as well. A court may reduce a penalty it finds disproportionately high, so a very large penalty may not be awarded in full.

Setting a deadline and withdrawing

If you want to leave the deal, the usual route is to give the developer a final, additional period to perform, in writing. If that period passes without delivery, you may withdraw from the contract. You do not need to set a period where it would obviously be pointless, where the contract ties its continuation to timely performance, or where special reasons justify immediate withdrawal; and you may withdraw even before the delivery date if it is obvious that the grounds will arise. You cannot withdraw over an insignificant breach.

After withdrawal, each side returns what it received, so the developer repays your money, and you can still claim damages, including lost profit that was foreseeable. A contractual claim relating to immovable property must be brought within six years of when you knew or should have known of the breach.

Wait or withdraw?

Why a registered preliminary right matters

If you registered a preliminary ownership right during construction, it is your strongest protection. Under the Law on the Public Registry, a pre-registered right rules out the registration of any other right to the same property unless the parties agree otherwise, and priority goes to whoever filed first. That protects you against a developer selling the same flat twice. If you have not registered it, ask the developer to do so now, at the standard registration fee.

If the developer goes bankrupt

Georgia's Law on Rehabilitation and Collective Satisfaction of Creditors, in force since 1 April 2021, sets the order in which an insolvent company's creditors are paid: costs first, then later debts and preferential claims, then unsecured claims. Secured creditors, such as a bank holding a mortgage on the plot, realise their collateral separately. The law contains no special protection for buyers of unfinished flats, so a buyer with only a money claim may rank as an ordinary unsecured creditor, while a registered right in the property may support a claim to the property itself.

What Tbilisi has done about unfinished buildings

Stalled projects are a known problem in Tbilisi. In its 2025 report the city said that up to 20 unfinished construction projects were being completed or would be put into operation by the end of 2026. In the long-running Center Point case, families who bought flats in unfinished buildings have waited for years while other companies took over completion; in July 2026, 433 families were still waiting at one site and 114 at another. These programmes depend on the city and on new developers, and they are not a remedy a buyer can claim.

What to do, step by step

1. Check the project's status

   On the Tbilisi City Hall map, which shows suspended sites, and at the site itself.

2. Collect your documents

   Contract, payment records, the extract with your preliminary right and all correspondence.

3. Ask for a written explanation and new date

   From the developer, with the reason for the delay.

4. Register your preliminary right

   If it is not already registered.

5. Send a written demand with a final period

   Stating the penalty you claim and that you may withdraw if the period passes.

6. Talk to other buyers

   Shared information and a common lawyer can help in a stalled project.

7. Decide with a lawyer

   Wait with compensation, withdraw and claim a refund, or go to mediation or court.

Our guide to property disputes explains the court, arbitration and mediation routes.

Does consumer law help?

Georgia's 2022 Law on the Protection of Consumer Rights protects consumers who buy goods or services for private purposes, and complaints go to the Georgian Competition and Consumer Agency. The law defines goods as movable things, so it is unclear how far it covers a flat bought from a developer; the developer's services under the contract may be a different matter.

Finished but not commissioned

Sometimes the building is complete but the commissioning act is missing. Until it is issued, the building may not be used and cannot receive permanent electricity or gas, so for a buyer the delay continues even when the work looks done. Tbilisi City Hall said in August 2025 that it had commissioned 910 buildings, home to about 30,000 families, under a temporary framework, and was reviewing a further 230 completed buildings for about 10,000 families. Ask the developer when the commissioning application will be filed and what is holding it up, and treat the commissioning date, not the end of the works, as the delivery date in your contract.

Keeping the evidence

Whatever you decide, build a file from the first missed date: the contract and its annexes, every payment, the registry extract, photographs of the site with dates, and every message from the developer. Send important demands in a way that proves delivery. A complete, dated file is what a lawyer, a mediator or a court will need, and it costs nothing to keep.

Risks and exceptions

• No penalty in the contract. You must prove your damages instead.
• An unregistered preliminary right. Your flat may be sold to someone else.
• A bank mortgage on the plot. In insolvency the bank is paid from the property first.
• Withdrawing too early. An insignificant delay does not justify withdrawal.
• Waiting too long. Contractual claims on property expire after six years.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a legal penalty for a late developer?

No statutory one; a penalty applies only if the contract sets it.

Can I get my money back if the flat is late?

Yes, by setting a final period in writing and withdrawing if it passes; the developer must then repay you.

Can a court reduce the penalty?

Yes, if it finds the penalty disproportionately high.

What protects me if the developer sells my flat to someone else?

A preliminary ownership right registered in the Public Registry.

What happens if the developer goes bankrupt?

Creditors are paid in a legal order; a buyer with only a money claim may rank as unsecured.

How long do I have to sue?

Six years for contractual claims relating to immovable property.

Does the city finish abandoned buildings?

Tbilisi has programmes for some stalled projects, but they are not a right buyers can claim.

Should I stop paying instalments?

Only with legal advice; stopping payments can put you in breach of the contract.

Sources

1. Civil Code of Georgia (Articles 129-130, 352, 394, 400-420, 485), Legislative Herald of Georgia (accessed 18 October 2026)
2. Law of Georgia on the Public Registry (Articles 12, 13), Legislative Herald of Georgia (accessed 18 October 2026)
3. Law of Georgia on Rehabilitation and Collective Satisfaction of Creditors (Articles 60, 104, 105), Legislative Herald of Georgia (accessed 18 October 2026)
4. Law of Georgia on the Protection of Consumer Rights (Articles 2, 4, 28), Legislative Herald of Georgia (accessed 18 October 2026)
5. Buying property in a new development in Georgia, JUST Advisors, 15 April 2025 (accessed 18 October 2026)
6. Tbilisi Mayor presents 2025 report to City Assembly, First Channel, 23 December 2025 (accessed 18 October 2026)
7. Marijani Street construction company fined after slope collapse, Georgia Today, 8 July 2026 (accessed 18 October 2026)
8. Real Estate 2026: Georgia, Chambers and Partners (MB Legal), 7 May 2026 (accessed 18 October 2026)

Change log

• 18 October 2026 - Guide published from the Civil Code (Arts. 394-420), the Law on the Public Registry, the insolvency law, the consumer law and Tbilisi City Hall sources.