Archive for May, 2007
Thursday, May 17th, 2007
Israeli company will build the largest holiday complex in south-east Bulgaria
Israelis will built the largest tourist complex and villa settlement in the Southwest of Bulgaria valued at 100 million euro. The Israeli company “Asim Investment Group” has started the grand project in the areas of Katarino and Golak, located on the territory of Razlog city. The complex will be named “Rila Ville Village” and will be constructed on a 150 decares of terrain. The start of the construction works is scheduled for February 2008 and will be completed in 5 years.
The property was bought on 31 October 2006 on a tender for the sum 6 008 388 BGN. The property is owned by the Municipality and has been given to the Municipality by the Ministry of Defense. In the “Golak” area the Israelis have bought 82 566 sq.m. and in Katarnio area – 66 084 sq.m. Three zones will be differentiated on the terrain: hotel zone with sports center, central part for public service and zone for apartment buildings. The complex will include a total of 1 000 apartments, trade- and entertainment areas.
Last week the investors organized a road show in the area where the site is to be constructed. Zvika Karmi stated that the complex will also have a child center, sport playgrounds, indoor swimming pool and a great number of other extras. The president of the Razlog Municipal Council – Radko Tumbev – told the investors that the municipality’s policy was to promote the tourism and added that in Razlog one could find all the natural resources needed to implement grand-scale projects.
Struma Dnes Daily |
Friday, May 11th, 2007
5 golf course projects to tee off in Shabla coastal area in Bulgaria
Developers plan to shoehorn no less than 5 golf resorts between Shabla and Durankulak, a 20 km stretch on Bulgaria’s northern Black Sea coastline. The Shabla municipality said the projects will be developed by Bulgarian Golf Society and Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Co., both part of Varna-based economic conglomerate TIM, Litex Commerce, Bulgaria Hold and Rosinvest. 
TIM is also developing a marina project in the Shabla bay area. The developers are in a rush to secure planning approval and all the necessary documents before the state designates the sites in the area that will be protected under the European Natura 2000 network. The Natura 2000 decision for the Shabla area and the area of the Durankulak lake was postponed for October 2007. Sites with approved masterplan or detailed development plan are not eligible for Natura 2000 protection.
Shabla mayor Velichko Makakov said the developers have squared their plans with the environment ministry and have no concerns about a likely wildlife protection zoning. The Shabla municipality will participate in 3 of the golf developments. The municipal council has already approved the contribution on the part of the city of 120 ha of land. The city will control 35% stakes in the joint ventures with the private developers.
The first of the 3 golf resorts is located near the villages of Vaklino and Krapets. It will be implemented by Bulgarian Golf Society over a 5-year period. The second project approved by the municipal council is the golf resort near the village of Ezerets which will be developed by Litex and Bulgaria Hold.
Shabla Golf is the third project involving the municipality. It will be developed by Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Co. on 140 ha near the village of Tylenovo. Litex and Bulgaria Hold each have one more golf resort in the area. Those projects require no sanction from the municipal authorities because they will be implemented on private land.
The Litex golf course, a partnership with Rosinvest, will take shape near the village of Krapets while the Bulgaria Hold project is located near Durankulak. Neither has building permits but the developers are hopeful they will be granted by September.
Litex Commerce recently announced it will invest some 100 mln euro in a 60 ha vacation complex near Balchik, another coastal town emerging as a major golfing destination along the Northern Black Sea coast. Construction of the 500-villa complex should begin this summer.
Tuesday, May 8th, 2007
Karlovo on the Bulgarian property market map
Prices of agricultural land in Karlovo vary from 0,50 euro to 10 euro per sq m, expert.bg reports. Investors interested in agricultural land intend to change the land status and use it for residential or commercial developments.
Plots outside regulation situated on the main road Soifa-Burgas are offered from 8 to 22 euro per sq m. The most expensive plots in Karlovo are those in regulation. Their prices vary from 22 to 35 euro per sq m.
Houses in Karlovo are offered for 300-450 euro a sq m. Apartments are offered for 350 to 500 euro a sq m, depending on the type of construction.
Retired people from Japan, UK and Israel are buying houses in Karlovo and the surrounding villages. Investors from USA are negotiating for the purchase of plots and the construction of holiday villages of kit houses, local agents told expert.bg.
Tuesday, May 8th, 2007
Bulgarian SPA projects boost property prices
Bulgaria’s State Agency for Tourism says that the number of tourists visiting spa resorts will increase by 75 per cent in the next three or four years. Investors have been working on spa tourism projects for a long time, Kapital daily reported.
There are spa centre and hotel construction projects in, among other places, the well-known destinations Sandanski, Kyustendil and Apriltsi. These regions boast favourable natural resources and, unlike other traditional resorts, are not burdened by overbuilding. Major spa projects have already influenced the property market, in certain regions further boosting property price increases.
The regions of Bansko and Razlog have emerged as the most popular among investors. According to real estate agency Address, eight vacation complex projects with a total built-up area of 50 000 sq m are underway in the village of Banya. The village is near Bansko and has 70 mineral springs. As a result, average land prices in the region went up, reaching 40 to 100 euro a sq m, Address said.
A major spa project in Kyustendil will result in a hotel and apartment complex of 32 055 sq m area. The centre will target wealthy clients. National Statistical Institute (NSI) data said that residential property prices in Kyustendil increased by 11 per cent in the first quarter of 2007.
Friday, May 4th, 2007
Bulgarian property profitability growing
The growing number of holiday property on offer has posed the question for an emerging secondary market at the Black Sea and mountain resorts, wrote on May 4. In Bulgaria, this market is still in its early stage, but it’s expected to develop in the next two to three years. Currently, there are about 40 000 properties for sale on the market around the country. Only in the past six months, the number has increased by about 50 per cent. Every third such property is in Slunchev Bryag (Sunny Beach), where offers have grown by 65 per cent.
The beginning of the holiday market in Bulgaria was about four, five years ago in Sunny Beach and St Vlas on the Black Sea coast. For its development helped the marketing of the biggest and most popular resort in Bulgaria (Sunny Beach) as a destination visited by more than 500 000 tourists annually. The holiday property market, however, has shifted towards other places, as that part of the Black Sea coast saw over-construction and oversaturation of holiday complexes.
Profitability is the main aim of the customers, who offer for sale already-purchased property. A large part from them are experienced investors who are looking for fast profit return. Revenue from resale of properties at the coast is between 15 and 20 per cent, depending on location. At winter resorts, earnings are larger, 60 to 100 per cent for the period of two or three years. What determines the price of the property is demand for properties in the area as well as the financial abilities of foreign investors, who are the main buyers.
In Sunny Beach, a customer is able to choose from 20 holiday complexes that correspond to his or her needs. This oversaturation of the market leads to holding prices for a long-term period. At the southern Black Sea coast, for example, prices have grown just by one per cent for the first three months of the year.
The rise in prices and the increase of profits from rent are to be expected in regions where supply is proportional to demand. At the sea coast, as well as at the mountain resorts, investors’ focus is already shifting towards smaller and medium resorts. The reasons are the high prices of land in popular resorts and the heavy construction density there.
The market at the northern coast still has potential for development. The extensive construction work in mountain resorts continues, but it will stabilise within two years. As competition grows, better construction quality and extras that the resorts offer will lead to increase of prices. Those resorts will attract new investors with greater purchasing power. Such are Russian and Scandinavian buyers. This will gradually turn into a factor for more construction of holiday homes to take place at the Bulgarian Black Sea coast. This, in turn, will lead to increase and stability of prices in regions where there is no over-construction and the place can offer a wide scope of high-quality services.
Pari daily