Renovating apartments in Krasta rajons - for 467 and 104 series buildings and new builds

Along Krasta iela: Soviet series next to new builds

Krasta rajons is a linear area along Krasta iela and the Daugava. Wikipedia writes that the Krasta housing estate is the latest-formed part of the Latgale suburb, and after independence was regained, intensive construction of retail and office buildings began here. So residential buildings here stand next to shopping centres, offices, warehouses and development land.

Among the series buildings, Wikipedia names the 467 series in the Krasta housing estate. According to nopo.lv, its load-bearing walls are reinforced concrete large panels and practically all walls are load-bearing; worn water pipes and wiring are named as typical problems. In the 104 series the external walls are aerated concrete panels and the internal load-bearing walls are reinforced concrete, and in a one-room apartment the bathroom is combined, while in a two-room apartment it is separate.

In these buildings, moving walls must be assessed from the building's design, and the work can be new utilities and finishing: 467 series apartment renovation, 104 series apartment renovation.

In a new project: from a grey finish to a home you can live in

In a new-build, the first question is what condition the developer handed the apartment over in. For example, the Krasta kvartāls project in Maskavas forštate between Kojusalas iela, Maskavas iela, Grēdu iela and Krīdenera dambis provides for six nine-storey buildings with about 500 apartments. It has one- to three-room apartments of 28 to 73 m², and construction of the first two buildings began in 2018. In such an apartment, the scope of finishing work is determined by the area and by what has already been handed over.

A grey finish can mean that the rooms must be prepared for finishing, while a white finish can mean that part of the work has already been done. For an interior design project that does not include renovation, reconstruction, restoration or demolition work, construction documents are not needed.

In a grey finish, the floor may need levelling before the covering. The manufacturer states that the self-levelling compound Ceresit CN 76 can be walked on after 3 hours, but tiling on it can be done after 3 days. Under parquet and laminate the moisture of a cement base must not exceed 2.0%, or 1.8% with underfloor heating. So the order of coverings must be planned by drying, not by the calendar.

In the form, note what finish there is now; you can send the developer's plan to the specialist when they contact you. More: new-build apartment fit-out and grey or white finish.

Krasta iela, the Salu Bridge and the Southern Bridge (Dienvidu tilts): what else to write

The area is reached by Krasta iela, the Salu Bridge and the Southern Bridge (Dienvidu tilts). The territory on both sides of Krasta iela is described as a car-oriented urban commercial space, so in the request write from which street to approach the building and whether it is possible to stop briefly at the entrance.

• The type of building: 467 series, 104 series or a new project, and its year of handover.
• The floor, the lift, the area in m².
• Which rooms: bathroom, kitchen, rooms, hallway.
• Whether the windows face the street and whether you are thinking about soundproofing.
• Whether you will change the risers, radiators or walls.

If the windows face a busy street, you can think about replacing the windows. Windows in external walls are common property of the building: you may replace them at your own expense in agreement with the building manager, and no documents are needed if the window division, proportions and frame colour are kept. Inside, soundproofing also helps.

A combined bathroom in a one-room apartment of the 104 series

In a one-room apartment of the 104 series, the bath and the toilet are in one room, and the kitchen is about 8 m². In a bathroom and toilet like this, during the renovation you decide whether to keep the bath or to install a shower with a floor drain, where to put the washing machine and how to close off the riser box. A shower drain needs a slope in the floor, so the floor level and the door threshold must be assessed before tiling.

If you want to move the bathroom and toilet, LBN 200-21 states that in an apartment building sanitary rooms are placed above similar rooms. Above the rooms of the apartment below they are allowed if the requirements for soundproofing, waterproofing, thermal insulation, fire safety, ventilation and reliability are met. Such work already affects the layout, so check whether a construction notice is needed. More: small bathroom renovation and walk-in shower with floor drain.

Risers, radiators and the loggia in a 467 series building

A riser is the common property of the apartment owners, and a radiator is also common property if its operation depends on the building's heating. So replacing a section of riser or a radiator in a full renovation needs a decision of the apartment owners' association, and work on the heating system is organised by the building manager. Leave the box around the risers with a hatch: specialists must be able to reach the building's utilities. See riser replacement and radiator replacement.

For the 467 and 104 series, the annex to the Riga territory use regulations contains standard sketches for glazing loggias; if you glaze according to them, a building design is not needed. The external structures of a loggia are nevertheless common property, so a loggia can be added to a room only with the association's consent. Interior finishing: loggia renovation.

If you plan an opening in a load-bearing wall, approval of reconstruction in Krasta rajons is handled by the Riga municipality's City Development Department (formerly the Riga City Building Board), with an explanatory memorandum and the consent of more than half of the apartment owners.

Prices for an apartment in Krasta rajons

• Full renovation: from €280/m² of apartment area.
• Turnkey renovation: from €600/m².
• Floor levelling, pour or screed: from €6.50/m².
• Radiator replacement: from €115 per radiator.

Prices are for labour. Materials are calculated separately in the estimate. Full renovation example: a 2-room apartment of 50 m², 50 × €280 = from €14,000 (labour). A new-build apartment of 28 m² turnkey: 28 × €600 = from €16,800 (labour). In a new-build, the price is also determined by the level of finish handed over, the number of rooms and the chosen finish. An exact estimate can be made after seeing the apartment.

Work: full renovation in Krasta rajons, turnkey renovation in Krasta rajons, floor levelling in Krasta rajons, bathroom renovation in Krasta rajons.