Methodology and sources
How Estiq reads apartment-association annual reports, computes the €/m² figures and compares associations — every rule on one page.
Sources
The annual reports that apartment associations file with the e-Business Register. Estiq has 8,541 associations; for each we use up to its five latest reports (currently 2023–2025).
- Floor area and number of flats: Building Register (EHR), the heated area of the flats.
- Address, location and neighbourhood: Maa- ja Ruumiamet address data (In-ADS) and neighbourhood borders.
- Each association page links to the original report in the e-Business Register.
How the reports are read
The balance sheet, income statement, notes and the flat table are read by machine. Each report gets quality flags; we use reports that passed the checks (OK, WARN) and those whose only flaw is a flat table summing to within 5% of its "total" line.
If a year's report is missing or failed the checks, that year comes from the next report's comparative column (marked with an asterisk). These match the older report in 98–99% of cases.
The figures and how they are computed
€/m² figures are divided by the floor area of all the association's flats in the Building Register; "a month" means the yearly amount divided by 12.
| Figure | Unit | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Total owner costs | €/m² a month, incl. utilities | Everything owners paid the association (the report's flat table), heating, water and electricity included, divided by the flats' floor area and 12 months. Closest to what an owner actually pays each month. |
| Association fees | €/m² a month, excl. utilities | The association's own charges — upkeep, management, repair fund, loan, insurance — without utilities, per m² of flats a month. |
| Typical flat per month | € a month | The median flat's yearly charge in the report's flat table, divided by 12. Half of the flats pay more, half less. |
| Repair fund balance | € at year end | Money saved for future repairs and not yet spent, at the end of the financial year. |
| Repair fund balance | € per m² of flats | The repair fund balance divided by the flats' floor area, so buildings of any size compare. Not a monthly charge. |
| Repair-fund charge | €/m² a month | The part of the fees that goes into the repair fund. |
| Loan balance | € at year end | The unpaid part of the association's loan at year end. It stays with the building when a flat is sold; repayments are part of the monthly fees. |
| Association fees per year | €, all flats together | The same charges as a yearly total for all flats (the report's "member fees"). |
| Association expenses (income statement) | € a year | The association's own expenses for the year per its accounts (upkeep, management, repairs, interest). Not the same as the owners' "total owner costs". |
| Reserve capital | € | The association's buffer for unexpected costs. By law at least 1/12 of its budgeted annual costs. |
| Cash | € at year end | Money in the bank at year end, the repair fund included. |
| Result for the year | € | Income minus expenses. An association is not for profit: a small plus or minus is normal; several large losses in a row mean costs are paid from reserves. |
Quality rules
- "Total owner costs" is shown only when the flat table includes utilities (its sum is above 1.1 × the fees) and its flat count matches the Building Register (±20%).
- No €/m² is shown when there is under 22 m² of floor area per flat (the area is incomplete) or when several associations share the building.
- Values outside a plausible range are treated as reading errors and left out (e.g. total owner costs €0.2–15/m² a month, repair fund €0–500/m²).
- Rankings only include associations with 8+ flats; the repair fund must fit in the association's cash (balance ≤ 1.2 × cash), and total costs must exceed the fees by at least €0.8/m².
Comparisons and signals
An association is compared with the smallest area that has at least 20 associations with a report for the same year: neighbourhood, then district, then municipality. "Lowest/highest quarter" means below the 25th or above the 75th percentile.
Strengths and watch points come from measured rules: the fund grew every year (3+ years), the fund is over 25% below its peak, a new or growing loan, fees up more than 25% in a year, two loss years in a row with falling cash, reserve capital below one month of costs.
Updates and limits
New reports are added as associations file them; data last updated 2026-10-26. Figures are machine-read and may contain errors: check the original report and ask the association for its current budget before deciding. This is not investment or legal advice.
If you see an error for your association, write to us and we will fix it. Contact