Regulation of the Real Estate Services Market in Ukraine: Public Demand, Government Response, and Market Prospects
Ukraine’s real estate services market has long remained in a zone of uncertainty. The absence of dedicated legal regulation, a shadow turnover of funds, widespread abuses, and high commissions all these issues have been an inherent part of the real estate sector for years. However, in 2025, the situation has changed: a strong public demand and a petition that collected over 25,000 votes forced the government to initiate real changes.
Today, real estate agencies and realtors operate without specific legal regulation. Their work is conducted under general business legislation, with no clear professional standards, qualification, or certification requirements. Realtors register as sole proprietors or legal entities, pay taxes, but there are no real mechanisms for quality or transparency control.
The sector remains “gray many intermediaries operate without official status, evade taxes, do not sign contracts, and clients are not protected from fraud or inflated commissions.
As highlighted in the petition, “Ukrainians are forced to pay high commissions 50%, 100% of the rental value or 2–5% when buying even in cases where they did not seek the realtor’s help but found the property themselves.”
The lack of clear rules creates room for the shadow market the scale of which is estimated at hundreds of millions of hryvnias each year.
What Society Demands: Key Points of the Petition
The petition reviewed by the Cabinet of Ministers clearly formulates citizens’ requirements:
- Mandatory registration of realtors as sole proprietors or legal entities.
- Minimum qualification and certification requirements.
- Mandatory contract or written confirmation of cooperation.
- Ban on charging commission without client’s request.
- Administrative responsibility for violating these rules.
These proposals are aimed not only at transparency but also at forming fair competition, bringing the market out of the shadows, and protecting consumer rights.
Government View: Balancing Reform and Realities
In response to the petition, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko stated that “The Cabinet of Ministers supports the need to regulate the real estate services market, taking into account the economic conditions and the state’s priority needs.”
She also emphasized: “Legal regulation of real estate activities in Ukraine can help increase transparency and competition in the real estate market, protect consumer rights, increase budget revenues, and professionalize the real estate services sector.”
The government is studying EU practices, where the market is regulated by national legislation with clear frameworks for consumer protection, financing, and market functioning.
However, there are also warnings. According to the State Property Fund, “Legal regulation of real estate activities will, on the one hand, lead to the growth of the bureaucratic apparatus and, accordingly, to an increase in budget expenditures, and on the other hand to higher costs for real estate businesses, which may affect the price of services.”
Next Steps: Working Group and Expert Discussion
The Prime Minister instructed the State Property Fund, together with the Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Justice, and Ministry of Development, to work on this issue. Special attention will be given to involving industry associations and the public in developing an optimal regulatory model.
Economic and Social Consequences
Legal regulation of the market could become a key step towards:
- reducing the scale of the shadow market and tax evasion;
- creating transparent and fair competition;
- strengthening consumer protection and professionalizing the market;
- increasing budget revenues.
At the same time, it is important to consider that strict regulation may increase business costs and prices for consumers. In a context of war, limited resources, and security priorities, the reform should be prudent and gradual.
Regulation of the real estate services market in Ukraine is a demand of the time and of civil society. Until now, the sector remained uncontrolled and often distrusted. Today, the government recognizes the public demand, sees the need for rules, and is trying to balance reform with economic realities.
Professionalization, transparency, and consumer protection must become the new standard.
At the same time, it is crucial to avoid excessive bureaucracy and higher costs for end consumers.
A successful reform of the real estate services market could become an example for other economic sectors that still remain in the “gray zone.”
Only openness, expert involvement, and a gradual approach can ensure balanced sector growth in the interests of the state, business, and every citizen.
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