Baku hosts first international real estate exhibition AIREX 2026
Azerbaijan's capital Baku held its first international real estate exhibition, AIREX 2026, this week. It covered market growth, affordable housing projects and the impact of technology on the property sector.
Azerbaijan this week held its first international real estate exhibition, AIREX 2026, in the capital Baku. It brought together developers and investors from across the region at a time when the country is pursuing large-scale urban expansion and reconstruction. The event examined the property market and the challenges facing a sector increasingly shaped by technology, sustainability and changing urban needs.
Organiser Riad Salayev said the aim was to attract more key regional players, as well as more international participants and investors. Baku is undergoing major changes, while reconstruction in Karabakh is creating demand for new homes and public infrastructure.
Affordable housing projects
Jamshid Amirov, Chief of Staff of the State Housing Development Agency (MIDA), said the agency has launched 20 projects to help citizens buy homes on preferential terms: seven in Baku, three in Karabakh and ten in other regions. The developments also include schools, kindergartens and a medical centre. So far 11 affordable housing projects have been completed, five in Baku and six in the regions. Three more are being implemented, and three residential complexes are in the design phase.
Technology and planning
Elchin Gadimov, Chief Commercial Officer of PASHA Real Estate Group, said the sector is moving towards capital efficiency, customer experience and long-term asset value, becoming increasingly data-driven. He explained that advances in AI let developers visualise a proposed project from a single photograph, without expensive rendering software, in minutes.
International architecture practice Chapman Taylor works on master-planning projects in Shusha and Jabrayil, as well as districts in Aghdam and Fuzuli. Board Director Marcelina Zielinska stressed that planners must consider business, the economy, location, climate and community.
Views from other markets
Tarik Imam, founder of Kinglike Luxury, which operates in Georgia and Türkiye, called Baku an emerging destination for international real estate investment. Lina Buziashvili of Georgian developer Silk Development said the event offered a chance to strengthen regional partnerships. Meekail Haleem of the Maldives' state-owned Housing Development Corporation presented plans for a cruise terminal and waterfront commercial district in Hulhumalé, and the proposed tourism destination Kudagiri Falhu.
Denys Rudnyk, CEO of Digital Residence, spoke about IT Hub Sea Breeze, which aims to attract international technology companies. He also cited government incentives, including 20-year tax exemptions for eligible technology park residents.
