Almaty City Guide

Almaty is Kazakhstan's commercial and financial capital and the deepest, most liquid property market in Central Asia. Though Astana took over as the political capital in 1997, Almaty still generates close to a quarter of national GDP, with a GDP per capita roughly a third higher than the new capital, and it hosts the country's largest concentration of banks, corporates, universities, and cultural institutions. Set against the Tien Shan mountains, the city of around 2.35 million residents combines a tree-lined Soviet-era core with new comfort- and business-class developments in southern districts such as Bostandyk and Medeu. Average residential values sit near USD 1,400 per square metre in late 2025, economy-class one-bedroom apartments trade around USD 50,000-55,000, while strong tenant demand keeps gross rental yields among the highest of any major regional city, broadly in the 7-9% range. Prices rose more than 4% in the opening months of 2026 and annual rents climbed close to 12% through 2025. For international buyers, Almaty offers Eurasian-gateway connectivity, a maturing mortgage market, and entry prices a fraction of comparable Eastern European capitals, balanced against tenge currency exposure and seismic considerations.