„For Sale“ read the sign, until recently, on one of the trees surrounding the house of the Mayor of Novo Sarajevo and former Mayor of Sarajevo, Benjamina Karić. The older property, with a garden, is located on a busy street in the Vraca neighbourhood of Sarajevo. She purchased it in 2013 for BAM 70,000 while she was a law student.
However, she denied that the house is currently for sale. The sign was, as she explained, the result of a misunderstanding with the agency and had remained from an earlier period when the house had been on the market. Following a conversation with a CIN journalist, the sign was removed.
In addition to the house, she owns an apartment in Titova Street in Sarajevo, a share in another apartment in the Grbavica neighbourhood, a share of a property in Hadžići, and commercial premises in Sutomore, Montenegro. Her husband, Alen Karić, owns two apartments, in Tuzla and Sarajevo.
Karić joined the Social Democratic Party of Bosnia and Herzegovina (SDP BiH) in 2010 while she was still a student at the Faculty of Law at the University of Sarajevo. Nine years later, she became the party’s vice-president.
On her thirtieth birthday, 8 April 2021, she was elected Mayor of Sarajevo. During her four-year term, her salary was approximately BAM 2,500 per month.
In the 2024 local elections, she was elected Mayor of Novo Sarajevo. In addition to an average monthly salary of BAM 4,500, she receives an additional BAM 800 every third month in her capacity as Commander of the Civil Protection Headquarters.
A profitable investment in property
Shortly after graduating from the Faculty of Law in Sarajevo, she began working in 2014 as a teaching assistant at the University of Travnik. In the same year, she completed her master’s degree.
By that time, she already owned two-thirds of a three-bedroom apartment in the Grbavica and an older house in Vraca. She received her share of the 96-square-metre apartment as a gift from her mother. She estimates the value of the 74-square-metre house, including the garden, at BAM 200,000.
A CIN journalist found a property sale advertisement displayed in front of the house. However, Karić stated that the property is no longer for sale, explaining that the sign had remained from a period when she and her family were facing financial difficulties following her father’s death.
„We considered selling the house at the time. However, we did not sell it, and it has remained as it is. It is currently not for sale. You may be asking because you saw the sign, but it was simply left there,” Karić said.
After defending her master’s thesis, she continued working at the University of Travnik and also as a teaching assistant at the Faculty of Law at the University of Zenica.
„Due to my obligations and the distance involved, I was no longer able to continue teaching and working at the University of Zenica,“ Karić said.
She obtained her doctorate in 2018 and, as she did not wish to give up her academic career because of her involvement in politics, she continued to teach as an associate professor at the University of Travnik and at the International University of Sarajevo.
The Titova Street Apartment and financial liabilities
Towards the end of her mayoral term in 2024, she purchased an apartment in central Sarajevo for BAM 300,000. The flat is located in the attic of an Austro-Hungarian-era building in Titova Street.
While she paid the purchase price and property tax for 70 square metres, she effectively acquired a 135-square-metre apartment, as the previous owner had obtained the consent of the other residents to use the attic space.
The sale contract states that the attic level was damaged during the war and subsequently suffered frequent leaks, and that the former owner replaced the roof at his own expense.
In return, the residents agreed to grant him use of the attic premises. However, for the additional square metres to be formally registered in the land registry, the new owner, Karić, must obtain the necessary permits from the Centar Municipality.
„The previous owner had initiated the legalisation process with the Centar Municipality, having obtained the consent of the other residents and part of the required documentation. I have submitted a request to continue the procedure, and it is currently ongoing,“ Karić said.
According to her, she took out a loan of BAM 230,000 to finance the purchase of the property, while the remaining funds were secured with the assistance of her family.
She subsequently took out an additional loan to renovate the apartment, consolidating it with the existing loan, bringing her total borrowing to BAM 476,000.
In the local elections held in October 2024, she was elected Mayor of the Municipality of Novo Sarajevo with 11,124 votes, nearly 500 more than the second-placed candidate.
She also received a commercial property in Montenegro as a gift from her father, which she says is currently vacant. She has valued it at BAM 80,000. In mid-2025, she inherited half of a nearly 900-square-metre estate in Hadžići from her late grandfather, on which he had built a holiday cottage.
Her husband, Alen, owns a 65-square-metre apartment in Tuzla and a 59-square-metre apartment in Sarajevo, which she valued at BAM 230,000 in her 2024 asset declaration.
The Karić couple lives in the apartment in Grbavica where she grew up. She says she has no savings and drives a Mercedes CLA, though she could not recall the year of the car.
„Overall, it’s an older model, certainly over 15 years old,“ Karić said.
Citizens can read more about Mayor Karić’s career and assets in CIN’s “Politicians’ Assets” database.
This database represents a unique repository of information on the careers, education, assets, legal proceedings, and party affiliations of around 230 politicians and public officials. Since 2009, CIN journalists have been collecting data and continuously updating the database with new profiles. It includes profiles of both current officeholders and those who have concluded their political careers.
