State Real Estate Agency puts Tallinn Liivalaia courthouse building up for sale for the third time

State Real Estate Agency (RKAS) is preparing to sell the former courthouse building on Tallinn's Liivalaia Street for the third time, following Tallinn city's approval of the property's detailed plan. Two previous auctions failed to attract buyers, with the first starting bid set at €4.5 million and the second at €4.14 million. The starting price for the third auction will be announced shortly before the sale begins.

Tallinn approved the detailed plan for the property at Liivalaia 24 last week, which had been initiated back in April 2016, taking nearly a decade to establish. This paves the way for the state real estate company RKAS to make its third attempt to find a buyer for the courthouse building being sold.

Two auctions, zero buyers

RKAS put the former courthouse up for auction for the first time in the summer of 2023 with a starting bid of €4.5 million, but no bids were received. According to experts, the price was too high. In autumn 2024, a second attempt was made with the starting price reduced to €4.14 million, but again no buyer was found.

RKAS sales director Marko Künnappas explained to ERR that the absence of a detailed plan was one of the main factors deterring potential buyers. "The establishment of the detailed plan was indeed the reason the sale was paused for a while. We will certainly communicate during this interim period with potentially interested parties," he said.

What changes in the third attempt?

According to Künnappas, the sales terms will remain largely the same, but one important change has been made: RKAS has signed a co-financing agreement with the city, which Tallinn required as a condition for approving the detailed plan. The co-financing amount is €240,000, with a formula applied according to the construction price index change in accordance with a Tallinn city council regulation. To secure the funding, a mortgage has been placed on the Liivalaia 24 property in favour of Tallinn city.

The starting price for the third auction has not yet been made public; it will be announced shortly before the bidding begins.

Building of up to 12 storeys

According to the detailed plan, the Liivalaia 24 plot has an area of 0.77 hectares. The land use is to be up to 15% residential and at least 85% commercial. The building rights allow for the construction of a commercial building of up to 12 storeys or a mixed-use building with commercial and residential space. The property is located in Tallinn's City Centre district in the Veeren quarter, at the corner of Liivalaia and Uus-Tatari streets.