Moldova real estate sales plummet 80% as agents demand urgent legal reforms
The Union of Real Estate Agencies (UAI) has petitioned the Moldovan Parliament for urgent legislative intervention to revive a stagnant property market. The organization warns that a combination of rigid anti-money laundering (AML) rules and institutional bottlenecks has pushed transactions to a 15-year low.
New data reveals that apartment sales in Moldova dropped by over 60% in 2025, with the decline accelerating to nearly 80% by year-end. While the real estate sector struggled with stalled construction sites and lost tax revenue, the banking sector reported record profits of approximately €255M (approx. 5B MDL).
The UAI attributes this paralysis to the current €60,000 (approx. 1.17M MDL) cash transaction ceiling and inconsistent verification processes. Many transactions are reportedly abandoned due to "informal denials" by notaries or banks before a formal refusal is even documented.
Proposed reforms for market liquidity
To restore functionality, the UAI proposes increasing the cash transaction limit from €60,000 to €200,000. They also advocate for a standardized "Self-Declaration of Solvency" to be accepted by financial institutions and a mandatory three-day response window for compliance checks.
Furthermore, agents are calling for the wealth justification window to be extended to 5–6 years. This move aims to provide clarity for buyers with legitimately sourced capital who are currently being discouraged by unpredictable vetting procedures.
Call for a strategic task force
UAI founder Andrian Toderașcu clarified that the industry is not seeking to weaken oversight, but rather to establish "proportional and applicable rules." The union has called for a joint task force including the Ministry of Finance, the National Bank of Moldova, and AML regulators.
Economist Veaceslav Ioniță confirmed the gravity of the situation, noting that total national transactions fell to 31,200 in 2025, down from 45,200 the previous year. The capital city, Chișinău, was the hardest hit, seeing a 40% drop in apartment sales compared to 2024.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
