Friday, March 23rd, 2007
Luxury golf developments are leading the way in Bulgaria’s latest property boom
The signs are that Bulgaria, once consigned to the cheap and cheerful bracket, is now heading up-market. Several new developments are now marketing themselves as “five star” with many based around golf courses.
The Black Sea coast is still attracting the bulk of buyers. Savills recently launched a new golf and country club development called BlackSeaRama, where apartments and villas are set within a gated community around a Gary Player-designed 18-hole course near Balchik. Apartments range in size from 95 to 170sq m, and villas measure up to 230sq m. The development is set within attractive gardens with on-site amenities, including communal pools and a five-star hotel. Buyers will have access to other sports such as tennis and the development lies near the Tuzlata Spa where visitors can enjoy its thermal baths and mud baths.
BlackSeaRama prices start from €124,000 (£88,570) for one-bedroom apartments, rising to €246,000 (£175,710) for duplexes. Lemore Kayvan from Savills admits that, for a country long considered an emerging market, this is relatively expensive. “It is a lot for Bulgaria but, for something of this calibre, it’s not bad especially when compared with other golfing destinations.” A one- bedroom apartment works out at €1,300 (£928) per sq m and Kayvan points out that buyers are getting something special in a country where five-star luxury is a relatively new concept.
Response has been good despite the development being targeted at a “niche market”. Luxury may be the main attraction but as there are few other five-star amenities in the area, does Kayvan think that buyers may be disappointed by a lack of amenities off site? “In terms of infrastructure you actually don’t need much to install a golfing development,” says Kayvan. “You just need space and beautiful countryside, which Bulgaria certainly has.”
Many investors bought in Bulgaria several years ago and have seen their investments soar in value. Today’s investors might question whether Bulgaria still has growth left in the market but Avatar International’s Amar Sodhi offers an interesting perspective: “In the past investors may have paid too much for developments that were of poor quality. In the early days, most developments were sold completely off plan leaving the developer with no incentive to use high-quality finishings. Today the market has cooled slightly and developers must compete for business.”
The market may not have the frenzy of the early years but Bulgarian tourism is still booming and Sodhi says that further growth is inevitable: “As long as the hotels are full, then there’s room for investment potential.”
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