What does it cost them to build a house: why Latvian citizens choose Soviet high-rise buildings

The population of Latvia in the post-war period has significantly increased, the indicator of the standard of living was one of the highest in the country. By the beginning of the 90s, the population of Latvia was over 2.5 million, a metro project in Riga was planned, and the film industry was developing.

And, of course, sleeping areas with standard buildings appeared, which practically did not differ from Moscow or Rostov-on-Don. The Soviet Union left behind a naive look into the future “now we will live,” but in the end we are looking for the mistakes of the past under the microscope.

A bright future is not for everyone

The overwhelming majority of the population of Latvia lives in Khrushchevs. Their service life is coming to an end, and internal redevelopment of apartments, as a rule, worsen the condition of houses. The authorities are thinking about resettlement of tenants, and those who have taken out a mortgage in such a house will be in a greater risk zone.

At the same time, new houses are being built slowly, there are 100 new buildings per 1000 Soviet high-rise buildings. And the price spread between the "old" and "new" house is palpable: on the same street, for example, in the area Imanta secondary housing will cost an average of 40 to 80 thousand euros, an apartment in a new building already from 100 thousand Euro. Not every citizen of Latvia can afford such housing due to low salaries.

There are many pre-war houses left in Latvia. This is a kind of plus - for example, in Riga or Daugavpils there are houses like living history. Looking at them, you can imagine how people lived here 100 years ago, but now the demand for them is small. Such houses are not burdened with communication and water supply, they sometimes look very ridiculous: angular, awkward, painted in different colors, openly falling apart (noticeable in the area of ​​Maskavas forstate, or Maskachka, in Riga). Old houses in the center are converted into a modern loft or offices, if there is no demand for an office, it is rented out as an apartment.

Despite the occupation regime, Moscow invested huge funds in the development of the Latvian SSR, Riga was considered an elite city. Now, some of the country's most outstanding buildings raise few questions from opponents of the Soviet regime: Academy of Sciences (the peak of socialism of "Stalinist" skyscrapers in Eastern Europe), where laws on the Soviet occupiers are passed so zealously, and a massive RadissonbluhotelLatvija on the Esplanade are almost untouched, although the star on the spire of the Academy suffered from the joy of the liberation of the Latvians.

Latvia is a huge territory without inhabitants. Small towns like Cesis, Ventspils and Liepaja are filled with the spirit and language of Latvians, and thanks to the budget and tourists, they can keep old houses in good condition.

But emigration is doing its job: over the 30 years of Latvia's independence, the country has lost more than 700,000 people, some of whom emigrated to Russia and other EU countries. The tough policy of the authorities is aimed at combating even the Russian language, but it is not working well to keep its citizens in Latvia, and the demand for new houses will fall.