Buying property in Latvia

Yes certainly.
I am a Brit Expat living in Ventspils on the West Coast and I own a large property with no unusual conditions or problems in purchase.

It is a good idea to find a good local person you can trust to help you through the process. It's not necessary to engage a Solicitor unless there are questionable areas.
As i had lived in Latvia for significant period prior to purchase - I enagaged a trusted local friend to act for me via Power of Attorney. All went smoothly.

To anyone moving to Latvia - I advise NOT to fall into the Riga trap. There are many good properties and locations OUTSIDE Riga at far less cost, better quality of life etc.

Good luck.
Nigel in Ventspils

Thanks for your contribution Nigel!

Harmonie.

Key challenges in recent years is price inflation in the hotspots of Riga and Jurmula. This is due to the Latvian government passing changes to the immigration law in July 2011 that allows persons to buy Latvian residency (and hence access to the EU) when they spend 50,000 - 100,000 LATS on real estate. Encouraging a lot of Russian money in particular.

This has resulted in foreigners causing price inflation in fashionable apartments, but houses (especially outside the hotspots) have not been so effected. 80% of foreigners buy apartments, while 20% buy houses (according to INLAT).

Main observation about buying property is that price negotiation does not generally involve more than a 5-10% reduction in the price (unless the seller is really eager to sell). Always helpful to have a local agent to assist.