Latest Property and Economy news from Bulgaria. News for Visitors and Investors

05.04.2008 Mortgage Crisis - Who's Next?

Ireland, England, the Netherlands and France are the four European countries appointed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as most likely to suffer from a real estate crisis after USA. According to IMF's analysys, this is due to the signifficant increase in property prices for the last five years.
The easier access to mortgages any economy provide and the, the more it is affected by the price fluctuations.
According to IMF the raise of property prices increases the amount of financial securities for all households and reflects in less requirements when applying for a load. This stimulates expenditure increase for all households. USA, Denmark, the Netherlands, Australia provide easy to get credit loans, while in the meantime a huge increase in proeprty prices has been registered in Australia, Ireland and Spain.

04.04.2008 Less English clients, more Russians and Greeks instead!

Property prices have increased with an average of 30% and 35% in bigger cities and holiday and

spa resorts. The total number of Notary deals is 311 000, which is approximately 4%-5% more

than last year.
According to data, provided by Bulgarian real estate agencies, there are about 3 million sq.m

vacational properties under construction - 2 m illion sq.m along the seaside and the rest

mainly near Bansko.
The secondary property market has also began to expand as there are many owners who have

purchased real estates as an investment. This market consists mostly of properties bought

off-plan a few years ago by English people.
Changes in customers have also been registered for the last year. Clients from UK and Ireland

are less, compared to those from Russia, Greece, Roamnia and Bulgaria.
Bulgarians have begun purchasing properties located in holiday resorts. However, most of the

Most of the clients were business owners and people working in tourism full-time. Their

average budget requirements are up to 25 000 EUR.
According to real estate forecasts, there will be a slight recess in the holiday property

market. However, this is expected to result only in the number of deals, but it is not likely

to cause a decrease of the prices.

03.04.2008 Property Prices Keep Increasing in Sofia & Varna

Prices for various types of real estates in Bulgaria's capital Sofia has increased with between 10% and 17% since the turn of the year.

The growth in prices can be explained with the brisk demand by well-off people and insufficient supply, estate specialists explained.

Property prices in the capital are expected to continue their increase and their annual growth by the end of the year is forecast to range between 10% and 20%.

Investors' interest is high in developments in the big cities, particularly in the capital Sofia and the Black Sea town of Varna, which now have some the highest residential property prices.

The average price paid for residential properties across Bulgaria was 750 Eur/m2 in 2007 compared to approximately 620 Eur/m2 in 2006, according to real estate companies.

Sofia, which has the highest salaries in the country, benefited from the real estate boom and recorded the highest rise in prices last year - almost 25%, reaching an average price of around 800 Eur/m2.

02.04.2008 New Golf Development near 'Albena' Resort

'Albena" - one of the best BUlgarian seaside resorts, has undertaken the construction of a brand new private golf-course. The managing company of the 'Albena' resort intends to develop not only a course for proffessionals, but also to establish a golf training academy.
The project has been created by a frech architectural company and is expected to cost around 6 million euros.
The 500 000 sq.m golf-course will be situated near the village of Rogachevo and is expected to open within 2 years when the first 9 holes and the training academy will open.

01.04.2008 New Investment Opportunities in Velingrad!

Prices of residential space and land plots in Velingrad has raised signifficantly for the last year. Property developers are showing strong interest in constructing residential buildings and hotels, which have led to a signifficant expansion of the market of rural and forestry land plots.

Up to the current day, the average price of an agricultural land plot is 15 Euro/sq.m, compared to prices of Januray 2007 when rural land was purchased at around 15 leva/sq.m. It has also been reported that on certain occasions this year, the price per squared meter has even reached as much as 120 Euro.

Amendments in the town's architectural plan are currently being considered by the local administration.
The residential complexes are expected to extend in the direction of the towns of Pazardzhik and Draginovo. An 18-hole golf course will be constructed near the dam.

The most exclusive properties, with price range between 1 100 Euro/sq.m and 1 250 Euro/sq.m, are expected to be the five-storey buildings situated on the outskirts of Velingrad, only 700 m from Kleptuza Lake.

31.03.2008 Israeli Electra to develop residential scheme in Varna

Israeli real estate developer Electra Group has started building on its first Bulgarian project – a gated residential community in Varna, to be named Botanic VIP Residence, the company’s sales manager Petar Petrov told Dnevnik daily on March 30.
The complex, in direct proximity to Varna botanical gardens, will cover 1.2 ha of land and will comprise seven buildings, with a total of 216 apartments. According to Israeli media, Electra acquired the piece with the ready project in 2006 at the price of 4.56 million euro.
The expected gain after selling the apartments is expected to reach 80 million euro. Three of the apartment blocks are scheduled for termination by the end of the year. Off-plan prices start at 1 350-1 500 euro a sq m.
Electra’s pipeline enlist another three projects in the Varna area - an office building and a mixed-use scheme in the city and a 53 ha residential community in the vicinity of area village Kalimantsi, Dnevnik wrote.

29.03.2008 More than 1M sq m office space in 2008 in the capital - Sofia

Sofia's office place market registered another quarter of strong implementation at the end of 2007, according to the latest MBL consultancy announce.
The number of class A and B offices continued to rise, amounting to 784 000 sq m as of the end of fourth quarter of 2007, after a new delivery of 48 350 sq m office places, all of them in suburban areas, according to research from MBL.
Provided data embrises areas in single-tenant owner-occupied and speculative constructions, as well as in condominiums.
More than 580 000 sq m of class A and B office place were under construction in Sofia at the end of last year, two thirds of which were in suburban districts. Tsarigradsko Chaussee Blvd come to surface as a main office location, with a view to the pipeline, MBL advisory commented.
Considering the total volume of planned schemes, MBL analysts expect that Sofia's office stock will surge by more than one million sq m over the next three to five years. About 260 000 sq m of new office developments will be added to the market in 2008 alone. As a result, the total volume of existing offices at the end of the year will surpass one million sq m, according to the survey.
Office vacancy rate continued to shrink in Q4 2007 and, after supply gained 6%, vacant space registered a slight 1.7 per cent grow, reaching 38 480 sq m.
Several buildings, which were ended at the turn of 2007, accounted for the of meaning, hike in vacant place from 23 350 sq m in December 2006 to 36 090 sq m six months later and agents still experience difficulty in securing their occupancy.

28.03.2008 The largest building in Rousse is under construction

It started the construction of the biggest recent building in Rousse, to be named Teodora, local news website ruseinfo.net reported on March 27. With its large actual area of 22 000 sq m, it will be the biggest structure in the Danube town built since 1989.
It is a precedent in the new building history of the town, a number of Rousse architects said, quoted by ruseinfo.net.
The construction will comply with the highest standards in modern European building, the developer told ruseinfo.net. Several individuals and companies from neighbouring Romania have already declared their interest in an off-plan purchase of units in the future centre before the supposed rise of prices during the summer, he added.
The construction has a modern design, pragmatically-shaped internal areas and will comprise retail, residential and office portions.

27.03.2008 New regional centre in Pleven will open doors tomorrow

Regional center for Central- North Bulgaria opens the biggest company for an construction and industrial technique in our country, “Euromarket Group “.
The complex is located in Pleven and include administrative part, service and storehouse . The centre will open doors official tomorrow by the mayor of the city- MR. Naiden Zelenogorski.
The looking of technics for dig and freight, machine for production, transportation and put on concrete, compressors has increased in the last 1-2 years in central north Bulgaria. “We expect the stature of lifting - vehicular technicians (engine trucks, electric truck) to be major as well in 2008.The search of welding technics and machines for equipping for auto services in the mountain region will continue to be on high level, commented Dimitar Ilchev, main manager of “Euromarket Group”.
“ For us is very important to be close to our clients in all our country, to know very well the needs of the people, because this way we can offer them appropriate products and services. Therefore we pawn on construction of well developed regional centres. We hold firmly to build good treatments with all constructions companies in Pleven region.
But there is and another important thing for us- the industrial companies” added he.

26.03.2008 BLD fund buys another plot near Sofia for residential complex

Bulgarian Land Development (BLD) investment fund acquired another 46 673 sq m piece of agricultural land near Sofia for 500 000 euro, although its exact situation was not revealed.
The plot is situated in an area with good potential for the development of a residential compound in Sofia’s suburban areas. BLD wants to consolidating several stretches of agricultural land in the area to a total of about 250 000 sq m. Once the fund has gained all the necessary land, it plans to change its purpose into plots for residential building.
BLD representatives consider the project very attractive to both holiday real estate buyers and Sofia residents, because of its enticing situation – only a 45-minute car drive from Sofia, the complex will combine the benefits of an urban complex with facilitated approach to ski slopes, spa facilities and golf courses.
The purchase will be financed by own resources, the exact situation will be pinpointed after all the adjoining lands have been acquired, company officials said in a statement.
Earlier this month, BLD announced that it had bought a piece with an area exceeding 38 000 sq m close to Sofia for 1.7 million euro. The two plots are not situated to each other.
BLD’s aim is to have invested or allocated for investment all of its capital, which currently stands to 51.4 million euro, by the end of 2008.

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