Real estate in Bulgaria: features, novelties and prospects

In the rating of states, whose real estate is especially popular among Russians, one of the first places rightfully belongs to Bulgaria. Over the past few years, more than 300 thousand residents of our country have become the owners of apartments, houses and non-residential objects on the territory of this republic, today the Russians have invested more than 1 billion euros in Bulgarian real estate.

In Simferopol, a square meter in an apartment located in an ordinary residential area will cost at least 600 euros, and for a square meter of more prestigious housing in Sevastopol or Yalta, you will have to pay at least 1.2 thousand euros.

However, the popularity of real estate in the resorts of Bulgaria is also influenced by the general level of prices, for example, for food. In fact, if in an ordinary cafe in Varna it is quite possible to have a tasty and satisfying lunch for only 10 euros per person, then in Sochi, having such an amount of funds in your pocket, you can count on only a modest lunch or 150 grams of barbecue.

There are also a number of offers in Bulgaria (and designed specifically for foreign buyers) that can be classified as elite real estate. For example, a square meter of housing located in close proximity to the beach, with social and sports infrastructure, with a good management company, costs from 1.2 to 2.5 thousand euros, which is still much lower than the price of elite real estate in Yalta or Sochi.

In general, experts identify several types of residential real estate in Bulgaria:

• apartments in the so-called Apart-complexes (in other words, apartments). Most often, such residential complexes are located in resort areas, have their own swimming pool, security, restaurant, parking and management company. Such housing is considered elite and is in demand among foreign buyers;
• Studio. A small open-plan apartment, usually with an area of ​​20 to 40 square meters, is found both in resort areas and in large cities;
• maisonette. Interesting, two or even three-level apartment, whose floors are connected by stairs. Located in apartment buildings on the seaside, such apartments have large panoramic windows and even their own terraces;
• private houses and cottages. A typical Bulgarian private house is necessarily equipped with a basement for storing food and wine, has a plot of land, and a cottage in an organized village also has a connection to a general security system, a developed infrastructure and a support service.

There are also townhouses in Bulgaria, as well as penthouses, which are considered quite expensive acquisition and often represent a two-level apartment with access to the roof and sea views..

When choosing one of the above types of residential real estate, it is worth considering another feature of Bulgarian real estate, which affects the formation of the cost of apartments in new buildings.

So, the area of ​​housing is calculated along the outer perimeter, including utility rooms, internal walls and a balcony, in addition, the area of ​​common premises corresponding to this apartment is added to it – the entrance, stairwells and landings, foyers, attics, facade walls, building corridors are divided proportionally to the number of rooms. That is, when purchasing an apartment, for example, with an area of ​​50 square meters, the buyer also pays for part of the common premises. The percentage of the cost of such an “ideal or common part”, as they say in Bulgaria, is usually about 8-10% of the property price, which can be an unpleasant surprise for the buyer, but allows the developer to offer a lower cost of residential square meters, because the construction costs general premises will be returned.

Citizens of other states are prohibited from buying plots of land that belong to agricultural land, as well as land, for example, in a forest.

It should also be noted that in Bulgaria centralized heating and hot water supply exist only in large cities, in multi-apartment neighborhoods. Private houses and cottages are equipped with boilers for heating water, and they are usually heated by air conditioners or electric convectors. However, the climate in Bulgaria is much warmer than the Russian one, so this heating method is usually sufficient.

Another feature of purchasing real estate in Bulgaria is that citizens of other states are prohibited from buying plots of land that are agricultural land, as well as land, for example, in a forest. However, the maximum period for which these plots can be leased is not limited, any legal entities can become their temporary owners if at least 1% of their shares belong to the citizens of Bulgaria. In addition, a company registered on the territory of the republic, even if its founders are foreign citizens, is considered an ordinary Bulgarian company, so it has the right to lease forests and land plots on an equal basis with other enterprises in Bulgaria..

Also, when choosing real estate on the territory of this republic, one more important factor should be taken into account: unscrupulous developers and intermediaries are not at all the prerogative of Russia, and when buying an apartment or house in Bulgaria, you can also become a victim of scammers.

The most common (and relatively harmless) way to cheat is to play down the distance to the beach. Often, the 200-300 meters declared to sellers turn out to be 2-3 kilometers, so you should not buy a house or apartment only by ad, without considering everything on the spot.

Ong Kim Seng. Veliko Bulgaria

There is also a danger that the facility will not be completed on time or construction will not stop at all, which is why apartments in new buildings at the excavation stage, although they are much cheaper, are not in great demand. However, this situation is not news at all for Russian citizens..

New developments in the real estate market in Bulgaria

Today, many analysts believe that the Bulgarian real estate market is already too saturated and designed exclusively for foreign citizens. The choice is really quite large, which allows the cost of square meters to demonstrate a stable, albeit insignificant, growth for several years.

Among the new, interesting proposals of this year, it is worth noting the residential complexes Golden Rainbow, Sunny Gardens-2, Diamond Palace, Gerber Residence, Chateau Aqua and Sea View Club, located in the area of ​​Sunny Beach.

Buyers may be interested in such objects as residential complexes Amphora and CasaReal, located in Sveti Vlas, near the popular yacht club Marina Dinevi.

BlancheCottegeClub will soon appear in Shkorpilovtsi (between Varna and Byala) on the first line from the sea. Specialists also highlight the CostaBulgara project in Sozopol.

Alexey Yakimov. Bulgarian street. 2008

At the beginning of next year, it is planned to put into operation the first Bulgarian skyscraper “Blue Diamant” in Burgas, the second largest city after Varna on the Black Sea coast of the country. The building will have 196 apartments, and half of them will show the sea from the windows. By Moscow standards, the 30-storey building is not at all something special, but for Bulgaria such projects are still a novelty. For example, in Sofia, the first skyscraper is planned to be built only in 2013..

Investors are also interested in a new complex located in a golf resort near Varna and receiving guests not only in summer, but also in the cold season, as it is equipped with a first-class golf course and a school where everyone can learn the features of this aristocratic sport … The cost of apartments in this complex with a water park, a yacht dock and traditional restaurants and cafes starts from 40 thousand euros, and a townhouse can be purchased for 100 thousand euros.

It should be noted that in Bulgaria there are not only Black Sea resorts, but also ski slopes. Villas and cottages in ski resorts such as Bansko, Pamporovo and Borovets are especially popular; new construction projects appear here every year and residential complexes are leased..

Perspectives

Experts unanimously point out that not only the acquisition, but also the operation of real estate in Bulgaria today remains one of the cheapest in the eurozone. Both the cost of electricity, gas, and real estate tax are distinguished by low rates, so that the return on investments in Bulgarian real estate is estimated at an average of 10-20%.

According to analysts, in the future, housing in Bulgaria will be stable, although at a low rate of increase in price, the increase may be about 10% annually. Only an excess of supply over demand can prevent such an increase in prices, since at present Russian buyers are already very picky about the choice of the object of purchase and they can either be attracted by a decrease in the cost or some special advantages of a house or apartment..