In a repeat auction organized by State Real Estate (VAS “Valsts nekustamie īpašumi”, VNĪ), the so-called Moscow House on Marijas Street in Riga failed once again to attract a buyer, despite a starting price of 2.142 million euros, according to the official e-auction website izsoles.ta.gov.lv.
No bids were placed on the property, the auction platform reports.
The property at 7 Marijas Street includes a 966 square meter land plot and an existing building. The auction started at 2.142 million euros, with a minimum bid increment of 10,000 euros.
The ascending auction closed on Monday at 13:00.
According to a Cabinet of Ministers order, VNĪ has been instructed to sell the property through auction, and it will continue organizing sales until a buyer is found.
VNĪ previously informed the LETA news agency that it was aware, even upon taking over the property with the aim of disposal, that the auction would be complex and time-consuming.
As previously reported, the first auction, which concluded in September 2024, offered the Moscow House for 3.57 million euros.
The starting price was later reduced by 20% to 2.856 million euros, then again to 2.499 million euros for the auction ending on the 9th of December, 2024 – yet no bids were received.
Further auctions held on the 24th of February, the 17th of April, and the 26th of May, 2025, all offered the property at the current reduced price of 2.142 million euros, but still failed to attract interest.
On the 11th of January, 2024, the Saeima adopted the law “On the Disposal of Immovable Property Necessary for Preventing Threats to National Security” in its final reading. This legislation mandated the transfer of the so-called Moscow House into state ownership. The law’s purpose is to guarantee Latvia’s national security by preventing and addressing threats to democratic governance.
According to its authors – the National Security Committee (NDK) – the law aims to terminate politically motivated activities endangering Latvian national security that were being conducted at the Moscow House under the guise of cultural events and educational programs.
The building, long a symbol of Russia’s “compatriots policy,” is being dismantled as a political tool threatening Latvian sovereignty and national security.
On the 26th of March, 2024, the government decided to transfer the property, formerly under the Ministry of Transport’s jurisdiction, to the Ministry of Finance.
Proceeds from the auction are planned to be transferred to the state budget, and later directed to support the people of Ukraine.
The Moscow Cultural and Business Centre was originally built in 1976. In early 2002, reconstruction of the former Railway Workers’ House began – a property Moscow acquired through an exchange with VAS Latvijas Dzelzceļš (Latvian Railways).
The building was inaugurated on the 28th of May, 2004. The five-story complex, which includes one underground level, has a total area of 4,482.4 square meters.
VNĪ was founded in 1996 and is wholly owned by the Ministry of Finance.
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